A.

Tổng quan về chủ đề Crime trong IELTS Writing

Task 2
Chủ đề Crime – Tội phạm được đánh giá là một trong những câu hỏi hóc búa nhất
đối với thí sinh. Một số các vấn đề bạn có thể gặp như:

 Ưu và nhược điểm của việc trừng phạt kẻ phạm tội;

 Quan điểm về việc cải tạo cho người phạm tội;

 Ảnh hưởng của việc bắt giam người phạm tội đến xã hội.

Với chủ đề Tội phạm (Crime), bạn nên đứng cả về khía cạnh của xã hội, hoặc bản
thân người phạm tội, hoặc nữa là bản thân của chính bạn – Tại sao bạn ý thức
được rằng mình không nên làm những điều sai trái. Từ đấy, bạn sẽ cảm thấy dễ
dàng hơn để phát triển các ý tưởng nhỏ cho một luận điểm lớn.

B. Các ý tưởng chính để triển khai chủ đề Crime

Police and Crime Prevention

 The job of the policy is to catch criminals;

 They must also prevent crime and make communities safer;

 There should be an increase in the number of police officers on the streets;

 Police officers should be seen as part of the community;

 They should be involved with education and prevention;

 The police should be in close contact with schools;

 They should focus on young people who have dropped out of school.;

 These teenagers may become involved with gangs.

Punishments/Prisons

 Fines are used as punishment for minor crimes;

 If the crime is more serious, prison is the most common punishment;

 Some criminals pose a threat to society;

 They are put in prison to ensure the safety of other citizens.

Negatives of Prisons
  Criminals are put together;

 They make friends with other offenders;

 Many prisoners re-offend when they are released;

 A criminal record makes finding a job more difficult.

Rehabilitation

 Another aim of prisons is rehabilitation;

 Prisoners receive education of vocational training;

 Prisoners should learn personal skills and specific job skills;

 Punishment could make prisoners’ behavior worse;

 Rehabilitation aims to make them better citizens;

 Rehabilitated prisoners are less likely to re-offend.

Capital punishment punishment by death

 Supporters say that capital punishment deters crime;

an illegal act
 Fear of the death penalty stops people from committing offences;

 The death penalty shows that crime is not tolerated;

 It is a form of revenge; imprisonment (n): the act of putting someone in prison

or trng thái b b tù
 The cost of imprisonment is avoided;

 The offender cannot pose a threat to others.

Against Capital Punishment

convicted of: decide that someone is guilty of a crime
 Innocent people could be wrongly convicted and executed;

 Crime rates are not necessarily reduced;

 Many criminals do not think they will be caught;

 Capital punishment is not a good deterrent; sth that prevents ppl from doing sth

 Executing prisoners creates a violent culture and encourages revenge;

 We have no right to take another human life.

Community service
reform: to improve sth, esp human behaviour

 Community service is a way to reform offenders; offender (n): a person guilty of crime
  It could be a solution to prison overcrowding;

 It avoids the cost of imprisonment;

 It makes offenders useful in their local communities;

 They are required to clean streets or talk to school groups;

 Offenders repay their community;

 They avoid the negative influence that prison can have.

Against community service

 Community service is not a sufficient punishment;

 Criminals should be locked up, away from their victims.

Crime in the Media

 Crime is one of the main subjects of most news programs;

sensational: intended to be shocking
 The mass media focus on violent and sensational crimes; rather than serious

 This lead to fear of crime among the public;

 Sensational stories attract more viewers or readers;

 The media report crime stories in order to increase their audience.

C. Từ vựng và ngữ pháp nổi bật

 criminals = offenders = people who commit a crime = people who commit an
offence = people who engage in criminal activities = people who take part in
illegal acts: người phạm tội/ tham gia vào các hoạt động phạm tội;

 minor crime = lesser crime = petty crime: tội nhẹ, không nghiêm trọng;

 major crime = serious crime: tội nặng, nghiêm trọng;

 impose stricter punishments on… = impose heavier sentences on…: áp đặt

mức phạt nặng nề hơn lên… ;

 receive capital punishment = receive the death penalty = receive a death

sentence = face execution: lãnh án tử hình;

 receive prison sentences = be sent to prison = be put in prison: lãnh án tù, bị

đi tù;

 face life imprisonment = serve a life sentence: lãnh án tù chung thân;

  reoffend = commit crimes again = continue to commit crime after being
punished: tái phạm;

 juvenile crimes = juvenile delinquency = juvenile offending = youth crimes =

crimes among young adults: tội phạm vị thành viên;

 pose a serious threat to society = threaten the safety of society = put society
in danger: gây ra mối nguy hiểm cho xã hội/ đe dọa sự an toàn của xã hội;

 tackle = solve = address = deal with = combat: giải quyết;

 solution = approach = measure: giải pháp;

 prevent somebody from… = deter somebody from: ngăn chặn ai đó khỏi….;

 crime rates = crime levels: tỷ lệ/mức độ tội phạm;

 be given the chance to… = be given the opportunity to…: được trao cơ hội làm
gì;

 urgent problem = pressing problem = grave problem: vấn đề khẩn cấp/nghiêm

trọng;

 the increased use of drugs and alcohol = alcohol and drug abuse: việc lạm dụng
chất kích thích; abuse: lm dng

 turn to illegal acts to generate income = commit crimes to earn money: phạm
tội để kiếm tiền;

 the major/primary/principal cause of… = the major/primary/principal reason

for…: nguyên nhân chính gây ra vấn đề gì;

 raise awareness of crime prevention = promote crime prevention

programs: nâng cao ý thức về việc ngăn chặn tội phạm/ đẩy mạnh các chương

trình ngăn chặn tội phạm.

Word list Definition Examples

criminal
hành vi phạm tội The book examines the causes of criminal behaviour.
activity (n)

commit (v) phạm tội Women commit fewer crimes than men.
punishment
hình phạt A 1994 law increased punishments for overloaded trucks.
(n)

The maximum penalty for the offence is two years’

penalty (n) hình phạt
imprisonment.

juvenile He introduced topical story lines about television, juvenile

phạm pháp vị
delinquency delinquency, graft, organized crime, and other developments
thành niên
(n) in American life during the 1950s.

người phạm
juvenile A juvenile delinquent in the United States is a person who is
pháp ở tuổi vị
delinquent (n) typically below 18
thành niên

heinous (adj) tày trời, rất nặng a heinous crime

imprison (v) bỏ tù The government imprisoned all opposition leaders.

The small fines for this type of crime do not act as much of a
deterrent (n) sự răn đe
deterrent.

“it can be difficult for an offender to be reintegrated into the

reintegrate (v) tái hòa nhập
community”

tiếp tay, dung

condone (v) The school does not condone bullying of any kind.
túng

Tạo ra (ảnh A well-funded national organization would be able to exert

exert (v)
hưởng, áp lực) more influence in Parliament.

breach (n/v): the act of breaking a law/to break a law set free from prison: th ra khi tù

enrich one's knowledge

broaden/expand/widen one's horizons: to increase one's knowledge/experience
subsidise: tr cp join hands in: góp sc, chung tay

social circumstances: hoàn cnh xh improve social interaction:

D. Một số đề mẫu của chủ đề Crime
Sample 1:

“Crime is a big problem in the world; many believe that nothing can be done to
prevent it. To what extent do you agree or disagree? Give your own opinion.”

Crime is unquestionably one of the most prevailing and worrying aspects in any
society, and its prevention should be taken seriously. Crime prevention can be
executed in various ways, firstly through a sustained honest presence in the
community and secondly through international cooperation.

A local presence by incorruptible law enforcement authorities may be costly,

however, the long-term investment would pay dividends in the future. A safer region
would encourage trade, investment and set an invaluable example for younger
generations. For example, crime has dramatically been reduced in the Favelas
around Rio de Janiero in Brazil. This was achieved largely through the government
committing large funds of money to stationing police headquarters in and around
the slums. These financial expenditures greatly benefited the community.

Secondly, due to the large-scale severity and the global impact that crime has in
some areas of the world, global cooperation is critical. Operating in a different way
would incur significant financial losses and render any expenditure futile. For
example, Somalian pirates in Africa have reigned terror amongst many ocean
transport companies in the area. Only through large-scale international cooperation
was policing the area possible. Therefore, crime reduction can be attributed to a
joint effort between countries.

To conclude, illegal activities are a costly and dangerous fact in the present global
economy; however, through large-scale government investment prevention is an
attainable goal. Also, spreading the expense through international cooperation the
resources invested can be significantly more effective in reducing criminals’
effectiveness abroad.
Sample 2:

“Crime is a problem all over the world and there is nothing that can be done to
prevent it. Agree or disagree? Give reasons for your answer and include any
relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.”

Crime is one of the major issues that all the countries have been facing recently.
Some people believe that there is nothing that can be done to prevent crime. I
completely disagree with this opinion and feel that crime rate can be controlled with
appropriate measures.

On one side of the argument, there are some people who believe that crime cannot
be regulated. According to them, criminals prevail all over the world and they try to
commit various illegal activities. No matter how many prevention measures are
taken by the individuals and the government, several people make their daily living
through activities like robbery, theft, murder, hate crimes, and others.

On the other hand, there are people who argue that crime can be prevented. The
government needs to frame strict rules to control crime. Also, there should be fear
of punishment. For example, the crime in the US is just 2% whereas in Somalia it is
50% and the main reason is strict rules in the US. Apart from the government,
individuals can contribute to preventing crime through strict family values and
monitoring their children on a daily basis. Thus it cannot go without saying that crime
cannot be prevented.

After having discussed the pertinent points related to the issue, I feel that the only
logical conclusion is that crime can be prevented through appropriate action by the
government and individuals.

Sample 3:

“Many offenders commit more crimes after serving the first punishment. Why is this
happening, and what measures can be taken to tackle this problem?”

It is true that some criminals commit crimes again after they have been punished.
While there are several reasons for this alarming trend, some effective measures
can be taken by governments to tackle this problem.
There are two main reasons for re-offenders. Firstly, the prison system can make
the situation worse. Criminals put together in prison and they make friends with
other offenders. While they are locked up in prison, they do not have much to do
there, and they would exchange information about what they have done before they
came to the prison or they may plan crimes with other inmates. Secondly, offenders
often do not have any other means of earning money. They are poor, uneducated
and lacking skills needed to maintain a job. Also, a criminal record makes finding a
job difficult as people usually avoid hiring people with criminal background.

To solve this problem, governments should focus on rehabilitation of criminals rather

than punishment. Above all, prisons need vocational training which allows inmates
to prepare for life outside the prison. They can learn practical skills such as
computer programming, car maintenance and graphic design. In this way, they can
be hired for a position that requires this certain knowledge and skills. Community
service is another way to reform offenders. Rather than being locked up in prison
with other inmates, offenders can help society and become useful to their local
community, and these activities would eliminate the negative influence that prisons
can have.

In conclusion, it is true the recidivism is one of the problems for our community; it
can be solved by focusing on rehabilitation rather than punishment itself.

Sample 4:

“Young people who commit serious crimes, such as robbery or violent attacks should
be punished in the same way as adults. To what extent do you agree or disagree?”

As the remarkable increase in juvenile delinquency has been a serious cause for
concern nowadays, it is generally believed that youngsters who are involved in
serious crimes such as murder or robbery should be subject to the same sort of
punishment as adults. However, from my point of view, while legal deterrent is
essential, it is advisable that the degree of detention for juveniles be lower than that
for mature people.

Although young people are inexperienced and to a certain extent unconscious of

their behaviors, it is wrong to say that they are virtually innocent when attempting a
murder or a fraud. Recent reports of adolescents below the age of
maturity committing murder or swindling people out of their money on the Net are a
case in point. Those young criminals seemed to abuse their rights in order to lower
or even get away with their sentence. Although titled as “minors” in legal papers,
juveniles have nearly the same intelligence and the physical strength as adults, who
are just several years older than them, so detention as compensation for their crime
is vital.

However, I believe that the degree of punishment should not be taken to the
extreme. Teenagers have insufficient life experience, and are to some extent
ignorant of what awaits them after committing a crime, so they should not be applied
the highest sort of punishment. Programmes that assist in the progress of re-
education of juveniles are wiser and more pragmatic replacements of severe
punishment such as lifetime imprisonment or capital punishment.

In conclusion, whereas young criminals are mandated to be subject to detention, it

is vital and ethical to put them in a lower scale of punishment than that for adults.