作文言之有物的“物”到底是什么？
如何想出充实、合理的IELTS作文素材一直是让很多考生都感到“心塞”的问题。很多同学都明白作文应该“言之有物”，但是还不理解IELTS examiners希望看到的“物”到底是什么，就已经匆匆走入考场成了牺牲品。
IELTS写作对ideas的要求和美国的GRE考试Issue写作对于ideas的要求是有本质区别的：GRE是思维能力测试，在美国本土以英语为母语的学生申请graduate school时同样也要提供GRE成绩单。所以，GRE对ideas的要求是insightful (具有敏锐的观察力)。
IELTS则是典型的英语语言能力测试（English proficiency test），只有以英语为非母语的人在申请大学或者向英语国家移民时才需要提供IELTS成绩。所以，IELTS的写作部分主要考查目的是考生用英语表达出ideas，并且用英语进行适当说理的能力，但它对ideas本身和对论证过程的要求只是reasonable（符合生活常识的），而不是profound（深刻的）。
说到底，由Cambridge English Language Assessment出题的IELTS写作考试是一种英语应用能力考试（English proficiency test）。如何把符合生活常识的ideas在很短的时间内用通顺、地道的英文表达出来,才是IELTS写作的真正挑战。
在分秒必争的考场实战当中，我们的目标应该是用1分钟左右想出可以写260 words以上的ideas，而且还不能像个别抗日剧的题材那么不靠谱。怎样达到这么快的速度呢？
请您先把下面的每道真题仔细看3遍，并且试着快速确定主体段里的分论点(即理由ideas)。
IELTS写作真题
★ Nowadays many people choose to be self-employed, rather than to work for a company or organisation. Why is this the case? What are the disadvantages of being self-employed?（剑14真题）
★ In spite of the advances made in agriculture, many people around the world still go hungry. Why is this the case? What can be done about this problem?（剑13真题）
★ In a number of countries, some people think it is necessary to spend large sums of money on constructing new railway lines for very fast trains between cities. Others believe the money should be spent on improving existing public transport. Discuss both these views and give your own opinion.（剑12真题）
★ Some people say that the only reason for learning a foreign language is in order to travel to or work in a foreign country. Others say that these are not the only reasons why someone should learn a foreign language. Discuss both these views and give your own opinion.（剑11真题）
★ Many museums charge for admission while others are free. Do you think the advantages of charging people for admission to museums outweigh the disadvantages?（剑10真题）
★ A hundred years ago, many people thought that the human race was improving in every area of life. Nowadays people are less certain about this. In what areas has the human race made important progress? In what areas do we still need to make progress?
怎么样？要在一分钟之内快速确定议论文主体段的分论点（即理由ideas）是不是挺有挑战的？