Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-08-19

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

In many countries, paying for things using mobile phone (cellphone) apps is becoming increasingly common. Does this development have more advantages or more disadvantages?

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

Student answer (Band 6.0)

In this digitalisation time, most of the payments are being switched to digital than a cash with the advancement of technology. Therefore, it can be seen globally that the payments are made by mobile applications are proliferating significantly. In my opinion, it is completely beneficial for users and governments too. The pros will be elucidated in the ensuing paragraphs alongside some negatives.

To commence, the first and foremost advantage for using digital payments is control on a corruption. In other words, each transaction of consumers and vendors will go through the bank entries. Hence, the money should be watched by the authorities. Apart from that, it gives a relief from someone to carry huge cash in bag which prevent them from being robbed. Additionally, the online payments can provide points on spending money which will be converted in cashback. To illustrate this, shopping has been done by bank credit cards gain points through which one can book a flight.

Moreover, this payment method saves the time as the payment of thousands can be done in fraction of time. Furthermore, people needs to make a record of their monthly expense if the cash payments have been done. Nevertheless, the apple pay or digital payment can pull the transactions from anytime in their phones.

On the other hand, it has some detrimental effects too. Firstly, there could be chance of online scam which is commonly found nowadays. Secondly, if the card or phone has been stolen then money should be tampered. Lastly, people are found to be failed to control on their expense since they started to use digital payment method.

In conclusion, although online payment has some cons, it should be preventable by extra security.Also the advantages of digitalisation cannot be neglected such as time saving, control on corruption and cashbacks.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response addresses all parts of the prompt, providing a clear position that the advantages outweigh the disadvantages. The ideas are relevant, covering corruption, convenience, and security. However, the development is somewhat uneven. While the points regarding corruption and convenience are clear, the discussion on disadvantages is brief and lacks depth. For instance, the point about 'tampered' money is vague and could be better explained. To reach a higher band, ensure that each argument is fully extended with more specific examples or logical consequences rather than just listing points.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The essay is logically organized with a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and conclusion. Cohesive devices such as 'To commence,' 'Apart from that,' and 'On the other hand' are used to guide the reader. However, some transitions feel mechanical or slightly unnatural, such as 'In this digitalisation time.' Paragraphing is used appropriately, but the internal flow within paragraphs could be improved by ensuring that sentences connect more fluidly. Referencing is generally clear, though some minor awkwardness in phrasing occasionally disrupts the progression of ideas.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The range of vocabulary is adequate for the task. You use some topic-specific terms like 'digitalisation,' 'transactions,' and 'detrimental effects.' However, there are instances of imprecise word choice and awkward collocations, such as 'control on a corruption' (should be 'control of corruption') and 'money should be tampered' (which does not convey the intended meaning of theft or unauthorized access). To improve, focus on learning common collocations and using more precise terminology to express complex ideas, rather than relying on slightly unnatural phrasing.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The essay demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are frequent grammatical errors, particularly with articles ('a cash,' 'the apple pay') and verb forms ('people needs to make,' 'shopping has been done'). Some sentences are slightly clunky, such as 'it gives a relief from someone to carry huge cash.' While these errors do not impede communication, they are persistent enough to prevent a higher score. Focusing on subject-verb agreement and article usage will significantly improve the accuracy of your writing.

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