TOEFL® essay: Some people prefer to live in a small town

[Rakhising]

TOEFL essay

Some people prefer to live in a small town. Others prefer to live in a big city. Which place would you prefer to live in?

Living in big cities and small towns, both have their own advantages and disadvantages. Although it is bit difficult to say that whether living in big city is of more advantage than living in small towns or vice-versa, from my personal perspective I prefer living in a big city. The city life is fast paced, and facilities are more easily available. Any new products which come in markets, ranging from electronic items to even a simple pen, are instantly available in the city as soon as the products are launched. There are wide variety of shops and thus wide variety of choices to choose from.

Apart from the availability of products, the standard of living is much higher in cities when compared to towns. Too many job opportunities and wide range of products available depending on each ones budget has led to the improvement in standard of living. The city grows each day ,with some or the other new project coming up everyday. In cities we find large number of entertainment multiplexes, shopping malls, educational institutions, hospitals, restaurants,etc growing in number each day.
The standard of education is also very high in cities.The easy availability of technology and modern teaching methods may also be one of the reason for this.In cities, we meet wide variety of people coming from various places. As a result of which we get to meet different people, share opinions, get to know different culture, get to taste different varieties of food and the list goes on. Thus enabling our over all personality development, which helps us to lead a better society life.

I do agree that living in cities has got some disadvantages such as Pollution, traffic jams and increased cost of living. However when compared to advantages, the disadvantages are negligible. Thus I believe living in city is more beneficial than in a small town.

I am having my exam on 22 so please help.

[Alan]

Hi,

My suggestions are in CAPITAL letters:

[Rakhising]

Thanks Alan...

[Doesxp]

Hi could you please review this excercise? Thanks for your help

Some people prefer to live in a small town. Others prefer to live in a big city. Which place would you prefer to live in? Use specific reasons and detail to support your answer.

While some people like to live in a metropolitan big city, I prefer to live in a quiet comfortable small town. In my opinion, there are some advantages to live in a little town. Small towns have an easy access to anywhere, so I go easily wherever I want. Also, they have less environmental pollution than big cities. I like to care my health so this is important to me.

The first advantage is that small towns have an easy access to all of their places because they have short distances to get to anyplace. This is important to me since there are some benefits such as save time and convenience. For example, when I have to go to the mall, I do not have to drive too much because is near to my house. I do not spend much time driving, so it is convenient and comfortable to me. In case of an emergency, if I have to take someone to the hospital, I would get soon there. Thus, it is an invaluable advantage.

In addition, little cities have less pollution than big cities. Air pollution is dangerous for health. Some studies have demonstrated that air pollution has increased every year in large cities. This air pollution is caused by industrial factories and vehicle traffic. This factories and cars steamed pollutant smoke to the air. This is important to me because I want to keep me healthy, so I cannot do that in these cities because their pollutants are harmful to my lungs. On the other hand, small cities have less pollution since they do not have big factories and vehicle traffic. This is a great benefit because it means less pollution. I want to keep me healthy so small cities are ideal for me.

In conclusion, short distances and pollution are things that I take into account when I look for a place to live. Small cities offer me these important benefits, so I would prefer to live in small cities rather than big cities without question.

[Kpaulchowdhury]

Some people prefer to live in a small town. Others prefer to live in a big city. Which place would you prefer to live in? Use specific reasons and details to support your answer.

People have own choice to live in small town or big city. some people prefar to live in big city , other like to live in small town. both side has strong cause to prefer either town o big city. In my point of view i prefare to live in small town.

I like to mention that i prefare to live in country side. i have strong point to choose countryside. First, i prefare live i quite place. so country side is best place for living quite. Also i like to enjoy nature. in that case it is better to live in small town to enjoy natural beauti. on the other hand, it is difficult to get quite place in big city.

second, i want to continue my life as a healthy person. in country side there is less pollution that the big city. In addition you can get fresh food and vegetables there. so, to being healthy i like to live in country.

In coclusion, i want to mention to keep good health , enjoy the nature and having good food it is better to live in country side. however, it keep away people from pollution .

[Sandy_321]

Some people like to live in small towns where as some prefer to live in big cities.In my case I prefer to live in a big city because of following reasons.
1.Infrastructure.2.Facilities.3.Oppurtunities4.Quality of life.In the following paragraphs i will explain why each of these reasons make people choose city over town.

First reason is infrastructure.In a big city, there will be excellent transport system.we will able to go where ever we want.The quality of roads,flyovers and buildings will be good.Even if they get damaged government takes proper steps to rebuild them since it is a city.In constrast to this in a small town infrstructure will be very poor.The roads will be in crippled condition.It will take years for government to build normal roads,bridges etc because of lack of sufficient funds.

Other reason is facilities.In a big city we will have all world class facilities like health care system,hospitals,educational institutions,airports,shopping malls etc.All this won't be there in a town.One has to wait for days to get proper treatment in hospital.And the quality of education will also be poor.Third reason is oppurtunities.In a city we will have lot of poourtunities like getting jobs,immigration to other countries etc.One cannot reap these benifits in a small town.

Final reason is overall quality of life.One cannot compare the quality of life in a city and town.City life would be much better,organized than town life where seldom some thing happens.Though there are negative effects of living in a city like cost of living,lack of free time the positive effects outweigh them.So I think living in a city make life comfortable,easy going than living in a town.

[EnglishRaven]

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There has always been a sharp distinction between urban and rural living, with each having its particular advantages and disadvantages. From a personal perspective, I am more inclined to live in a small town rather than a big city. To me, it boils down to more peace and quiet; a better environment to live in; and family safety.

To begin with, small towns are usually quiet and relatively calm. The pace of life is relaxed and the low number of cars and people makes for a peaceful setting without too much noise. Of course, not all small towns are idyllic in this fashion, and a slow and quiet lifestyle isn't every person's piece of cake. However, I personally enjoy it. As a child I lived in both a small country town and then later a large busy city. I vividly recall how much calmer the small hamlet was, and how relaxed and easy-going it made me and others there feel. Conversely, the city with its traffic and crowds of people seemed constantly busy and noisy.

In addition to peace and calm, small town living can usually be associated with a better environment. Apart from the fact that there is less traffic and associated pollution, small towns are mostly located in the countryside and have easy access to rural settings. By way of example, it is usually relatively easy to walk out into fields, forests, valleys or even to rivers and lakes (in their natural settings) when you live in a small rural town. The same can't be said of city living - which of course has other appeals like entertainment, nightlife and a broader scope of amenities. If, however, like me you prefer the natural environment close to your doorstep, then small town living will be a more attractive option.

Besides tranquility and environmental appeal, I also have to say that small hamlets are better for families - and family safety in particular. Small towns have closer-knit communities where everyone knows and generally looks out for each other. I personally live in a very small coastal town these days, and I deliberately moved here because of my wife and two young children. I know they can go to and from school without being in danger from traffic or some of the nastier elements of society that tend to congregate more in big city locations. This is not to say that close-knit safe communities can't be forged in cities, but I think anyone who has lived in both settings knows the safety factor for families is more reliable in smaller community-based townships.

To sum up, then, I think I have shown with some conviction that factors like peace and quiet; clean and natural environment; and family safety all amount to better living in small towns. And while I concede that big cities have their own special advantages that can't be matched in a lot of small rural settings, these are the factors that matter most to me. Give me small town living and lifestyle any day!


Jason Renshaw
http://www.English-iTutor.com

[EnglishRaven]

Hi there - I've left a deliberate "error" in written expression in the essay above. Can you find it? Which phrase in the essay could/should be replaced with the phrase "cup of tea"?



Jason
http://www.English-iTutor.com

[Topaze]

Haha

I was just going to praise this essay for being spotless and confidently state that only some unfortunate accident would prevent the author from getting the perfect score on the Writing section when I noticed, browsing another topic, that you're a teacher, not a test taker.

The error you mentioned is, I believe, the idiom "piece of cake" used instead of "cup of tea". My gut feeling also tells me that there should be a comma after the words "like me", but it could be wrong, of course.

That's indeed a model essay.

[EnglishRaven]

Right and right and right again!

1. Yes, I'm a teacher (though I like to put myself in the position of test takers on a regular basis to better understand their challenges and situations)

2. Yes, indeed, "cup of tea" should replace "piece of cake" in the second paragraph (or first 'body' paragraph)

3. And yes, like you, I believe there should indeed be a comma after 'like me' in the third (or second 'body') paragraph ~ thanks for spotting and correcting that

The essay was written in 25 minutes flat, so perhaps you'll grant me one punctuation error?

Thanks for commenting!