You should spend about 40 minutes on this task.
In the last 20 years, there have been significant developments in the field of information technology (IT), for example, the World Wide Web and communication by email. However, these developments in IT are likely to have more negative effects than positive in the future. To what extent do you agree with this view?
Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant example from your knowledge or experience.
You should write at least 250 words.
Sample Answer 1:
Nowadays, the advancement of Information Technology, specifically the internet has transformed the face of our civilization. Albeit, the internet has several drawbacks, I disagree that it outweighs the advantages.
It is true that the internet can bring some negative influences toward human behaviour, such as consumerism and autistic manner, to name a few. Consumerism, for example, is caused by the rapid growth of e-commerce, online advertising, and internet accessibility. Because of these, people found it easy to do transactions. They prefer to buy things online other than making an effort to go to their nearest local retail shop. On the other hand, such conditions, especially internet accessibility, which compounded by widespread usage of mobile gadgets, had induced autistic manner among internet user. Autistic here, means, that people tend to be less active and isolated at the same time because they can easily do things with the internet by only having gadgets in their hand or sitting in front of the computer.
However, information technology has also done justice to mankind. Firstly, it helped brings people together despite country boundary and remoteness. Secondly, due to the internet, people can bridge the gap of communication’s distance easily and rapidly. Some examples for these are the usage of instant messenger, email, and online meeting application. Finally, since internet helped eliminate territorial’s gap, any world citizen can now easily spread their movement to the global citizen.
In conclusion, although Information Technology, particularly internet, has several negative impacts, in my opinion, it has more advantages to offer to our future generations.
[ by – Nuke Amadeus ]
Sample Answer 2:
In the last two decades, the world has witnessed enormous changes in Information Technology and people have experienced new lifestyle by this development. It is obvious that these advancements have brought many benefits for humankind, though it is argued by many, including me, that this enhancement will result in more negative impacts than positive ones in the future. This can be taken into account by analysing both aspects.
Firstly, looking at the benefits of this unparalleled development we can see that our lifestyle has got a new dimension with the development of IT which people in the past could not even imagine. For instance, email has made communication faster, easier and less costly. Individuals, business owners and people from all walks of life take advantages of this faster communication and this has made the globalisation a reality. Furthermore, due to the introduction of World Wide Web, human knowledge has been centralised and every topic is now accessible by anyone from any place in no time. People can get information on any subject of their choice. Online education, distance learning, medical advice, research papers, online books, entertainment are just a few clicks away. By taking these examples into consideration it is undeniable that these improvements have made life much easier and enriched.
Keeping the advantages aside, however, the negative impacts of the technology cannot be ignored. It is often forecasted that the negative impacts would be more severe in the future. For example, with the usage of the email system, the traditional way of communication has been destroyed such as letter writing, face to face conversation and it kills our personal touch with others. This will further decline people’s basic ability to socialise and interact with each other in the future. The dependency on technology will bring catastrophe if something goes wrong and the way we are becoming dependent is quite alarming.
Secondly, because of the huge number of websites and web applications available on the internet, there is no regulatory system to keep close eyes on children’s online activities. This, in turn, could lead to serious moral issues in future. Banking, medical service, traffic control, research, control of a nuclear weapon, shopping, education etc are getting digital and being controlled over the online protocols and a simple mistake could bring unimaginable destruction to human life.
In conclusion, following the analysis of advantages and disadvantages of the development of IT, it has been proven that it will have more negative aspects in the future and needs to be addressed prudently to avoid harmful effects on individual and society.
[ by – Nuke Amadeus ]