Band 7.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.0 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-10-07

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

In many countries today, crime novels and TV crime dramas are becoming more and more popular. Why do you think these books and TV shows are popular? What is your opinion of crime fiction and TV crime dramas?

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

 

Student answer (Band 7.0)

Nowadays, there is an emerging popularity of crime stories and serials in different parts of the world. This shift stems from a move away from traditional romantic or comedy genres and the heroic portrayal of criminals. In my view, it has an overall negative impact on society.

One of the primary reasons for the rapid growth of crime novels and TV crime dramas is that people have been exhausted by traditional romcoms and want to see different genres like crime documentaries. They believe reading or watching crime-related books or dramas may give them a dopamine rush, which other genres fail to do. Moreover, many young individuals feel inspired by the chivalry of the criminals and want to try that themselves. For instance, a significant number of people all around the world cheered the robbery shown in Money Heist and considered those thieves 'heroes'.

However, I reckon such shows and tales give birth to many problems. Not only do they promote criminal activities, but they also glorify such heinous acts. Furthermore, these plots give the public more ideas on how to commit crimes on a larger scale. Eventually, the crime rate increases, harming the security of ordinary people. Hence, there should be an age limit to air such social problems that may raise more concerns than awareness.

In conclusion, although books and movies showcasing crime are gaining immense popularity among the masses due to their interesting plots and glorifying wrongdoing, I believe these themes bring more harm than good by spreading a false image of criminals.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

You address both questions and maintain a clear opinion that crime fiction has a negative social impact. The explanation of popularity includes audience fatigue with familiar genres, excitement, and the example of Money Heist, while the second body paragraph explains your concerns about glorification and imitation. These are relevant points, but some are less fully developed than others: the claim that viewers feel inspired by criminals is broad, and the link between fictional plots and a rise in crime is asserted rather than supported or qualified. The conclusion also repeats the main position without adding much. To strengthen the response, explain more precisely what audiences find compelling and support the social-impact claims with a reasoned example or acknowledge that effects may vary.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.0

The response has a clear four-paragraph structure, with the introduction establishing your position, separate paragraphs addressing popularity and concerns, and a concluding summary. Progression is easy to follow, and devices such as “Moreover,” “However,” “Furthermore,” and “Hence” help signal relationships between ideas. The contrast between reasons for popularity and your criticism is particularly clear. Some linking is slightly mechanical, however, and the final paragraph largely restates points already made. There is also a small mismatch in the introduction: “the heroic portrayal of criminals” is presented as part of the shift, but the first body paragraph does not clearly explain this as a reason for popularity until the Money Heist example. Make the links between claims more explicit and use the conclusion to synthesise rather than repeat.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.5

You use a reasonably varied vocabulary for the topic, including “glorify,” “heinous acts,” “chivalry,” and “false image,” and the meaning remains clear throughout. There is some awareness of register, although a few choices are imprecise or unnatural: “serials” is less suitable than “TV series,” “exhausted by traditional romcoms” sounds overly literal, and “give birth to many problems” is an awkward collocation. “Social problems” also does not accurately describe crime dramas in the sentence about an age limit. Greater precision in collocations and a more measured choice of terms would make the argument sound more natural. Continue using topic-specific vocabulary, but check whether each phrase fits its context.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 7.0

You demonstrate a good range of sentence forms, including the inversion in “Not only do they promote criminal activities,” a complex sentence beginning “although,” and several subordinate clauses. Many sentences are accurate and punctuation generally supports the meaning, so the argument is consistently easy to understand. A few grammatical choices remain awkward. In “people have been exhausted by traditional romcoms,” the present perfect passive is not a natural way to express the intended idea; a construction such as “people have grown tired of” would be clearer. The phrase “there should be an age limit to air” also needs a more suitable grammatical pattern, such as “an age restriction on broadcasting.” Keep practising complex structures while checking that verb forms and prepositional patterns express the intended relationship precisely.

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