English Writing Tutor

Theory — Vì sao Complex sentences = chìa khóa band 6.5+?

IELTS Writing chấm Grammatical Range dựa trên độ đa dạng cấu trúc câu. Chỉ viết câu đơn = tối đa band 5.5. Muốn band 6.5+ phải trộn:

📝 Template

Simple sentence        (câu đơn)      — 30%
Compound sentence      (câu ghép)     — 20%
Complex sentence       (câu phức)     — 50%  ⭐ ăn điểm nhất

3 loại câu — nhắc lại nhanh

Simple (1 mệnh đề):

“Public transport reduces pollution.”

Compound (2 mệnh đề nối bằng and / but / so / or):

“Public transport reduces pollution, but it requires significant investment.”

Complex (mệnh đề chính + mệnh đề phụ):

“Although public transport requires significant investment, it substantially reduces urban pollution.”

Complex = mệnh đề chính (main clause, đứng độc lập được) + mệnh đề phụ (subordinate clause, KHÔNG đứng độc lập, mở đầu bằng subordinating conjunction).

10 Subordinating conjunctions PHẢI thuộc

Chia theo nghĩa:

Nhóm ĐỐI LẬP (Contrast)

Từ	Ví dụ
Although / Even though	“Although fees are high, demand keeps rising.”
Whereas	“City A invests heavily, whereas City B lags behind.”
While (nghĩa contrast)	“While some argue for X, others prefer Y.”
Despite / In spite of + noun/V-ing	“Despite rising costs, enrolment continues to grow.”

Nhóm NGUYÊN NHÂN (Cause)

Từ	Ví dụ
Because	“He succeeded because he worked hard.”
Since (nghĩa "vì")	“Since resources are limited, prioritisation is essential.”
As (nghĩa "vì")	“As demand grew, prices rose sharply.”

Nhóm ĐIỀU KIỆN (Condition)

Từ	Ví dụ
If	“If governments act now, climate change can be mitigated.”
Unless (= if not)	“Unless action is taken, the situation will worsen.”
Provided that	“Provided that funding is secured, the project will proceed.”

Nhóm THỜI GIAN (Time)

Từ	Ví dụ
When / Whenever	“When students engage in extracurricular activities, they perform better.”
Before / After	“Before making decisions, policymakers should consider evidence.”
Until	“Rates continued rising until 2015, when new regulations took effect.”
As soon as	“As soon as the vaccine was approved, mass rollout began.”

3 kỹ thuật CAO CẤP nâng band 7.0+

Kỹ thuật 1 — Participle phrases (cụm phân từ) mở đầu

Thay câu đơn nhàm bằng participle phrase (V-ing / V-ed) mở đầu:

Câu đơn:

“Governments consider these factors. They then design better policies.”

Nâng cấp participle:

“Having considered these factors, governments can design more effective policies.”

Hoặc:

“Faced with rising healthcare costs, many nations are turning to preventive care.”

Cấu trúc:

Having + V3 (đã hoàn thành, trước hành động chính)
V-ing (đang diễn ra, cùng lúc)
V-ed (bị động, cùng lúc)

Kỹ thuật 2 — Reduced relative clauses (rút gọn)

Chưa rút gọn:

“Countries which invest heavily in education tend to perform better economically.”

Rút gọn V-ing:

“Countries investing heavily in education tend to perform better economically.”

Rút gọn V-ed (passive):

“Policies implemented in the 1990s are still yielding benefits today.”

Kỹ thuật 3 — Cleft sentences (nhấn mạnh)

Nhấn mạnh 1 yếu tố cụ thể bằng "It is X that…" hoặc "What… is…":

Câu bình thường:

“Education matters most in reducing poverty.”

Cleft — nhấn "education":

“It is education that matters most in reducing poverty.”

Cleft — nhấn "reducing poverty":

“What matters most in this context is access to quality education.”

Dùng cleft tối đa 1 lần trong bài — dùng nhiều thành gượng.

Bảng "nâng cấp" câu đơn → câu phức

Học 5 mẫu chuyển đổi này:

Câu đơn	Câu phức nâng cấp
“AI is transforming industries. Workers must adapt.”	“As AI transforms industries, workers must adapt.”
“Costs are high. Enrolment continues to rise.”	“Despite high costs, enrolment continues to rise.”
“Governments do nothing. Pollution will worsen.”	“Unless governments take action, pollution will worsen.”
“Cities invest in transit. They reduce congestion.”	“Cities that invest in transit successfully reduce congestion.”
“Studies show a link. It's between diet and disease.”	“Studies conducted in recent years have demonstrated a clear link between diet and disease.”

Typing — Gõ 1 đoạn dùng ĐỦ 3 loại câu

Gõ chính xác đoạn dưới đây (đề: Free university, agree/disagree):

📝 Template

Free tertiary education promotes social mobility. This is because
financial barriers prevent talented students from low-income
backgrounds from accessing higher education, thereby perpetuating
inequality across generations. Although some argue that state-funded
universities burden taxpayers, evidence from Germany, which abolished
tuition fees in 2014, suggests that the resulting increase in
graduate income more than offsets the initial cost. Provided that
implementation is properly funded, free tertiary education emerges
as a strategic investment rather than a fiscal burden.

Phân tích cấu trúc:

“Free tertiary education promotes social mobility.” → Simple
“This is because financial barriers prevent…” → Complex (because = subordinator)
“Although some argue…, evidence from Germany… suggests…” → Complex + relative clause (although + which)
“Provided that implementation is properly funded, free tertiary education emerges…” → Complex (provided that)

Speaking — Đọc to 10 câu phức mẫu

Mỗi câu đọc 3 lần, chú ý ngắt hơi ở dấu phẩy:

“Although fees are high, // demand keeps rising.”
“Because resources are limited, // prioritisation is essential.”
“Unless governments act, // the situation will worsen.”
“Whereas some argue for X, // others prefer Y.”
“Having considered these factors, // governments can design better policies.”
“Countries investing in education tend to perform better.”
“It is education that matters most in reducing poverty.”
“Despite high costs, // enrolment continues to grow.”
“Provided that funding is secured, // the project will proceed.”
“When students engage in extracurricular activities, // they perform better.”

Chú ý:

"Although" / "Because" / "Whereas" — nhấn âm đầu, hơi lên giọng, ngắt nhẹ ở phẩy
"Having + V3" đọc liền không ngắt

Grammar — Ghép 2 câu thành 1 câu phức

Ghép 2 câu đơn thành 1 câu phức dùng subordinating conjunction phù hợp:

1. “Rents in the city are high. Many young people cannot afford to move out.”

Đáp án

“Because rents in the city are high, many young people cannot afford to move out.”

Cách khác: “As rents in the city are high, many young people…” hoặc “Due to high city rents, many young people…”

2. “Governments should invest in renewable energy. Fossil fuel reserves are declining.”

Đáp án

“Since fossil fuel reserves are declining, governments should invest in renewable energy.”

Hoặc: “Given that fossil fuel reserves are declining, governments should…”

3. “Public transport reduces pollution. It requires significant government funding.”

Đáp án

“Although public transport requires significant government funding, it substantially reduces pollution.”

Hoặc: “Despite requiring significant government funding, public transport substantially reduces pollution.”

4. “Countries invest in early education. They see long-term economic gains.”

Đáp án

“Countries that invest in early education tend to see substantial long-term economic gains.”

Rút gọn: “Countries investing in early education tend to see long-term economic gains.”

5. “The government must impose stricter regulations. Air pollution will continue to worsen.”

Đáp án

“Unless the government imposes stricter regulations, air pollution will continue to worsen.”

Hoặc: “If the government fails to impose stricter regulations, air pollution will continue to worsen.”

Game — Xác định loại câu (Simple / Compound / Complex)

Đọc 8 câu, phân loại:

“AI is transforming industries, and workers must adapt.”
“Although fees are high, enrolment continues to rise.”
“Public transport reduces pollution.”
“Cities that invest in transit reduce congestion.”
“Governments must act, or the crisis will worsen.”
“When students receive scholarships, they perform better.”
“Having reviewed the evidence, the committee approved the policy.”
“Poverty is a global issue.”

Đáp án

#	Câu	Loại	Lý do
1	“AI is transforming…, and workers must adapt.”	Compound	Nối bằng "and", 2 mệnh đề độc lập
2	“Although fees are high, enrolment continues to rise.”	Complex	"Although" = subordinator
3	“Public transport reduces pollution.”	Simple	1 mệnh đề duy nhất
4	“Cities that invest in transit reduce congestion.”	Complex	Relative clause "that invest"
5	“Governments must act, or the crisis will worsen.”	Compound	Nối bằng "or"
6	“When students receive scholarships, they perform better.”	Complex	"When" = subordinator
7	“Having reviewed the evidence, the committee approved the policy.”	Complex	Participle phrase mở đầu
8	“Poverty is a global issue.”	Simple	1 mệnh đề duy nhất

Mục tiêu band 6.5+: đảm bảo ít nhất 50% câu trong bài là Complex.

Điểm cần nhớ

50% câu trong bài phải là Complex để đạt band 6.5+
Học thuộc 10 subordinating conjunctions — chia 4 nhóm (contrast / cause / condition / time)
Participle phrases mở đầu = ghi điểm cao ("Having considered…", "Faced with…")
Reduced relative clauses (V-ing hoặc V-ed) = ngắn gọn + academic
Cleft sentences dùng tối đa 1 lần/bài
Bài tiếp theo (F-05) sẽ đi sâu vào Conditionals — cấu trúc "if" cho Task 2 solutions