Question Prompt

Your local city council believes elderly drivers over the age of 65 should be required to reapply for their driving licenses. The city is now surveying its citizens on this issue.

The city survey:

Option A: Senior citizens should have to have their driving licenses renewed.

Option B: Senior citizens should not have to have their driving licenses renewed.

Choose the option that you prefer. Why do you prefer your choice? Explain the reasons for your choice. Write about 150-200 words.

Position: Option A: Elderly people should have to have their driver’s licenses renewed every year after the age of 65.

Everything changes with age, especially the human body. This essay will discuss the reasons people over the age of 65 should have their licenses renewed every year.

There are many arguments for having elderly people renew their driver’s licenses annually. Foremost, the senses of sight, hearing, and awareness deteriorate when a person gets older. Vision is a particular problem because if a driver cannot see properly in an automotive vehicle, they are prone to accidents. This is a problem not only for the driver of the vehicle but also for the public at large as well. Also, senior citizens have to account for newer and different vehicles and traffic lights as the world progresses digitally. These alternative forms of street signals and car signals may cause hesitation in drivers, so a renewed driving test helps older drivers stay informed of the latest changes in driving. Finally, as a safety precaution, a renewal license allows the driving assessor to monitor reaction time and any physical disability a driver may have as they age.

In conclusion, having persons over the age of 65 renew their driving licenses yearly will help keep older drivers and other road users safe. (200 words)

Content and Coherence

Number of ideas: 3 ideas–sufficient for this prompt

Quality of ideas: judgment call for the raters, but all examples are directly related to their ideas

Organization of ideas: by way of their signal words (first, also, finally) age of senses, digital signage, instructor to note physical movements–sufficient but not overly so

Examples and supporting details: are related to ideas – sufficient

Vocabulary

Word Choice: deteriorate, senses, particular, automotive, prone, hesitation, renewal, assessor, and disability are sufficient for the context and representative of a strong English vocabulary

Suitable use of words and phrases: the words are used in the proper context to give meaning to the ideas presented

Range of words and phrases: deteriorate, senses, particular, automotive, prone, hesitation, renewal, assessor, disability show a range of suffix endings (parts of speech knowledge)

Precision and accuracy: the words are used accurately

Readability

Format and paragraphing: 3 paragraphs

Connectors and transitions: The signal words First, Also, and Finally are used to add cohesion

Grammar and sentence structure: a sufficient number of simple, compound, and complex sentences are used

Spelling and punctuation: all spelling and punctuation are accurate

Task fulfillment

Relevance: Some problems relevant to old age are maintained throughout the response–senses, physicality, and digital change as confusion

Completeness: The question prompt is answered from a consistent position

Tone: The tone is consistent throughout √

Word Count: the maximum of 200 words is reached √

Criteria (How did you score this Task 2 opinion response?)

By following the outline of a 3-paragraph response and answering much of the criteria above, this response would score a 7 – 9 or higher. Remember, there are judgemental aspects to the criteria but if your response is well written, it will be reflected in your score.