Lesson 3 · Lesson guide
Tense Choice in Academic Writing
Hello, my dear student!
Hello! Many band 6 reports have good vocabulary and clear structure, but the tenses jump around: “In 2010 the figure rises… then it has fallen… by 2020 it drops.” Each mistake is small, yet together they pull the grammar score down.
The good news is that tense choice in IELTS Writing is not a matter of taste. The task tells you which tense to use. A chart with past years needs the past simple. A projection needs future forms. A process diagram has no time at all, so it needs the present simple, usually passive. In Task 2, general truths are in the present simple and recent changes in the present perfect.
Today you will learn to read the time frame before you write a word, and to check your answer for consistency in the last two minutes.
See you in the exercises,Your teacher
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The task tells you the tense
Before you plan, look at the years on the chart or the words in the question.
Task 1
Past data → past simple
Charts with finished years (1990–2020) are described in the past simple from start to finish.
- In 1990, 20% of graduates were women. By 2020, this figure had risen to 55%.
Task 1
Projections → future forms
Use will, is expected to, is predicted to, is projected to. Avoid sounding too certain: these are predictions.
- The figure is expected to reach 70% by 2040.
Task 1
Processes → present simple passive
A process happens again and again, with no date. The person doing it is not important: is collected, are sorted.
- First, the used paper is collected and sorted.
Task 2
Truths, trends and predictions
General truths → present simple. Changes up to now → present perfect. Possible results → will / could / may.
- Education plays a key role in society.
- Online learning has grown rapidly in recent years.
- This could reduce the cost of a degree.
Remember!
Past years → past simple. Projection → will / is expected to. No time (process) → present simple passive. Map then and now → past simple and present perfect.
Mistakes I correct every day
Not: In 2005, the number of students rises to 2 million.Say: In 2005, the number of students rose to 2 million.
A past year → past simple, not the present.
Not: Then the bottles were washed and filled.Say: Then the bottles are washed and filled.
A process is general → present simple passive.
Not: By 2040, the figure reached 70%.Say: By 2040, the figure is expected to reach 70%.
2040 is in the future → a future form.
Not: Nowadays, more and more people studied online.Say: Nowadays, more and more people study online.
Nowadays → present, not past.
Useful frames
Tap to hear them. Each frame fixes the tense for the whole sentence.
Over the period shown, …
past chart → past simple
It is projected that …
projection → will
At the first stage of the process, …
process → present simple passive
Since then, the area has been transformed.
map, then and now → present perfect
In recent decades, …
Task 2 trend → present perfect
Check yourself
A diagram shows how chocolate is made. Which tense?
A table shows data for 2000, 2010 and a projection for 2030. Which tenses?
Two maps show a town in 1995 and today. How do you describe a change?
Now it’s your turn!
8 short parts, each a little harder than the one before. Take your time: mistakes are how we learn.
— Your teacher