The question
Write about the following topic:
In many countries, people are getting married and having children later in life than in the past.
What are the reasons for this? What effects does this have on families and society?
Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.
Write at least 250 words.
Key ideas for a high-band answer
- Causes: longer higher education, especially for women, and the wish to establish a career first.
- Causes: high housing costs and the desire for financial stability; less family pressure to marry young.
- Positive effects: older parents are often more mature and financially secure; women build careers.
- Negative effects: declining fertility, a falling birth rate and an ageing population (e.g. South Korea).
- Children may have less time with grandparents; policy responses such as affordable housing and childcare.
Band 9 model answer
317 words · written by Abroadway to show band 9 features (not an official IELTS sample)
In many parts of the world, the average age at which people marry and have their first child has risen steadily over the past few decades. This trend has several clear causes and both positive and negative effects on families and society.
One major reason is the expansion of higher education. More young people, especially women, now spend their early twenties at university. Once they start working, they often want to establish their career before taking on family responsibilities. A second reason is financial. Housing costs have risen sharply in many cities, and young couples frequently feel they must achieve financial stability, such as a secure job and a home of their own, before starting a family. Changing social attitudes also play a part, as there is less pressure from relatives to marry young than a generation ago.
Some of the effects are positive. Older parents tend to be more emotionally mature and financially secure, so they may be able to give their children better housing, education and attention. Women who delay having children also have more opportunity to build careers, which benefits both their families and the economy.
However, there are significant drawbacks. Fertility declines with age, so some couples who wait struggle to conceive or have fewer children than they wanted. At a national level, this contributes to a falling birth rate and an ageing population; South Korea, for example, now has one of the lowest birth rates in the world, raising concerns about who will support future pensioners. In addition, children born to older parents may have less time with their grandparents, who are an important source of support in many cultures.
In conclusion, people are marrying and having children later mainly because of longer education, career ambitions and economic pressures. In my view, while this brings benefits for individual families, governments should address its long-term demographic effects through affordable housing and better childcare.
Useful vocabulary for this topic
- delay
- career
- higher education
- financial stability
- housing costs
- fertility
- birth rate
- ageing population
- grandparents
Learn how to plan and write this essay type in the free lesson Problem–solution and cause–effect essays.
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