Onterra TutorDescribe a book, film or song that changed how you think
Duolingo English Test writing question in the official format, with a full model answer and notes on why it scores. Write your own version below it and get an instant rater-style score.
The question
Describe a book, film or song that changed the way you think about something. What was it, and what changed?
Model answer
The book that changed my thinking was a short one about how cities work, which I bought mainly because it was cheap. Before reading it I saw a street as a route between two places. The book argued that a street is a place in its own right, and that the wide, fast, empty roads I had always taken as a sign of progress were really a sign that the life had been engineered out of a neighbourhood. I noticed it immediately in my own city, where the streets people love are narrow, mixed and slightly untidy. It changed what I want from where I live, and it changed how I voted in a local decision about parking, which I would previously have ignored completely.
Why this answer scores
- Says what the writer thought before and after, which is what the prompt asks and most answers skip.
- The observation about narrow, untidy streets is specific enough to be believable.
- Ending on a small real consequence, a local vote, is stronger than claiming the book changed everything.
Do not memorise model answers; raters recognise recycled essays instantly. Study the moves, then make them with your own ideas, and check where you stand with a scored practice.
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