The Summarize Written Text task in the PTE exam measures your ability to identify and condense the main ideas from a written passage effectively. In this task, you need to summarize a given passage into one sentence. A common theme appearing in the exam relates to important societal topics, such as an aging population and the growing demand for healthcare services.
Let’s go through some carefully crafted Summarize Written Text examples based on this topic, and evaluate responses for different PTE scores.
Sample Summarize Written Text Task: Aging Population and Healthcare Demand
Prompt (Official Style):
As life expectancy continues to rise globally, a growing elderly population is becoming a significant demographic reality for many nations, especially in developed countries. This aging population increases the demand for healthcare services, which presents complex challenges for policymakers. Technological solutions like robotic assistants and telemedicine offer potential to alleviate some of these pressures. Governments and healthcare providers must also adapt by making public health infrastructures more resilient, ensuring care affordability, and addressing the unique needs of older citizens. With strains on staff and financial resources, the systems must find a balance between innovation and accessibility to maintain efficacy. Furthermore, although this demographic shift presents challenges, it also emphasizes the need for more social interaction and policies focused on the quality of life for elderly citizens.
Task: Write a one-sentence summary of the passage.
Response Samples
Sample for Score 90+
As the elderly population increases globally, the demand for healthcare services rises sharply, requiring both technological innovation and improvements in public health infrastructure to remain accessible and effective.
Content: This response captures all key points clearly, including the aging population, healthcare demand, need for innovation, and the importance of accessibility.
Form: Correct form as it consists of one sentence.
Grammar: Excellent grammar with no errors.
Vocabulary: Keywords such as “demand,” “innovation,” and “infrastructure” are accurately used.
Spelling: All words are spelled correctly.
Sample for Score 80-89
The increasing elderly population is placing a growing demand for healthcare services, highlighting the need for more resilient public health systems and innovative solutions to balance care and accessibility.
Content: The response accurately addresses the main points — aging population, growing demand, the need for resilient infrastructure, and innovation.
Form: Meets the one-sentence requirement.
Grammar: Minor mistakes, but they do not affect the meaning.
Vocabulary: Well-chosen words like “resilient” and “innovative” add depth.
Spelling: No spelling mistakes.
Sample for Score 70-79
The growth of the elderly population increases healthcare demand and requires new innovation in the health system.
Content: This summary includes key points, but it misses the specifics of balancing innovation with accessibility and resilience in healthcare systems.
Form: Sufficient as a single sentence.
Grammar: Simple, clear grammar without errors.
Vocabulary: Limited vocabulary in comparison with higher band responses.
Spelling: No spelling errors.
Sample for Score 60-69
An older population growth is raising the healthcare demands.
Content: Summarizes the main idea but omits crucial details, such as innovation and changes to the healthcare system.
Form: Single sentence, but too brief.
Grammar: Minor mistakes, such as the article use with “older population.”
Vocabulary: Basic vocabulary with limited range.
Spelling: No spelling errors.
Sample for Score Below 60
More elderly people means more hospitals are needed.
Content: Misses many detailed elements of the passage (namely innovation and system adaptation).
Form: Correct length but too simplistic.
Grammar: Simple sentence structure, lacks sophistication.
Vocabulary: Very basic, doesn’t fully address the passage’s complexity.
Spelling: No spelling errors.
Related Topics for Extra Practice
To further explore this area, you can practice with other related tasks that cover similar themes in PTE. Explore how the growing elderly population affects both healthcare and public policies as these are common themes in PTE:
- Public health policies for aging populations, which discusses the importance of policymaking in response to demographic shifts.
- Public health challenges in aging societies, which explores the broader impact of aging on healthcare systems globally.
Each of these linked articles provides further context to help you better prepare for these themes.
Vocabulary and Grammar Review
In this section, we look at key vocabulary from the sample task for further study.
-
Demographic (/ˌdɛməˈɡræfɪk/) – Noun/Adjective: relating to the structure of populations.
Example: “The demographic of elderly citizens is growing in many nations.” -
Affordability (/əˌfɔrdəˈbɪlɪti/) – Noun: the ability to be affordable or not expensive.
Example: “Ensuring affordability of healthcare is a major concern as populations age.” -
Resilience (/rɪˈzɪlɪəns/) – Noun: the ability to recover quickly from difficulties.
Example: “Healthcare systems must build resilience to cope with the increasing demand.” -
Telemedicine (/ˌtɛlɪˈmɛdɪsɪn/) – Noun: the remote diagnosis and treatment of patients using telecommunications technology.
Example: “Telemedicine is a promising solution to reduce patient loads in hospitals.” -
Innovation (/ˌɪnəˈveɪʃən/) – Noun: the introduction of new ideas or methods.
Example: “Technological innovation can help healthcare systems handle more patients.” -
Accessibility (/ækˌsɛsɪˈbɪlɪti/) – Noun: the quality of being able to be reached or entered.
Example: “Healthcare must maintain accessibility for all, despite technological advancements.” -
Citizens (/ˈsɪtɪzənz/) – Noun: inhabitants of a particular town or city.
Example: “Older citizens have specific healthcare needs that require attention.” -
Policymakers (/ˈpɒlɪˌmeɪkərz/) – Noun: people who are responsible for making rules or laws.
Example: “Policymakers need to consider the aging population when designing healthcare systems.” -
Strain (/streɪn/) – Noun: pressure or demand on a system.
Example: “The aging population puts a strain on healthcare services.” -
Efficacy (/ˈɛfɪkəsi/) – Noun: the ability to produce a desired result.
Example: “To ensure the efficacy of healthcare, systems must combine technology with skilled care.”
Conclusion
The theme of “Aging Population And Healthcare Demand” is highly relevant in many PTE Summarize Written Text tasks, as it taps into pressing global concerns. By practicing with these samples and focusing on crafting a well-rounded, one-sentence summary, you can significantly improve your performance. Be sure to take note of the specifics in every passage and structure your response to reflect the main ideas concisely.
Make sure to check out other related topics, such as Universal healthcare systems and affordability, for a broader understanding of healthcare challenges in aging societies. Taking the time to master this can pay off greatly in boosting your PTE score!
