📈 A glimpse of my IELTS Writing class today: hedging 📈

Whenever I talk about hedging in #IELTS, I think about the proverb "Give someone enough rope and they will hang themselves" because students often overuse it.

Hedging is words like "might" or "to some extent." It is used to express uncertainty, probability, caution. It's very common in academic writing. And whenever the students hear this, they start using hedging everywhere - they want to sound academic after all.

But not everything needs to be hedged because not all things in academic essays are uncertain, probable, and cautious. For example, you won't say: "IELTS might be an international test to some extent" or "People who are 16 might be prohibited from buying alcohol in Russia." These are just facts and should be expressed directly: "IELTS is an international test" and "People who are 16 are prohibited ... ."

I am going to give you three pairs of sentences which are not hedged. However, one sentence in each pair should be hedged. Which one?❓

1. Certain genes make people impulsive and aggressive.
2. Genetic causes make people commit crime.

3. Women are physically weaker than men.
4. Women are not as successful in police jobs as men.

5. Punishment is the best way to modify behavior.
6. Punishment is effective at modifying behavior.

KEY:

❌ 2. Genetic causes make people commit crime.
✅ 2. Genetic causes might make some people commit crime.

❌ 4. Women are not as successful in police jobs as men.
✅ 4. Women might not be as successful in police jobs as men.

❌ 5. Punishment is the best way to modify behavior.
✅ 5. Punishment might be / is believed to be / seems to be the best way to modify behavior.

Do use hedging, but don't hedge facts. Use it to leave space for alternative opinions or cases, not just because it sounds academic.