Band 7.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.0 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-10-09

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)

In recent years, there has been a growing trend of reading crime stories and watching television dramas. This is mainly because people like to read suspenseful stories, as they are intellectually stimulating. In my opinion, these crime stories rasie awareness among general public regarding the consequences associated with the criminal conduct.

People prefer watching thrilling and mysterious stories, as the suspense associated with such stories thoroughly engage the viewers. Such stories also enhance logical reasoning ability of readers and viewers, and they connect the clues to identify the criminal. For instance, the detective series of Sherlock Holmes has been very popular among readers who enjoy reading such stories which challenge their intellect and promotes critical thinking.

I firmly believe that crime novels and dramas can be instrumental in educating people regarding the social and legal consequences associated with criminal acts. These stories become meaningful lessons for people who get to know how families of such criminals suffer in society once the suspect is incriminated. This ultimately discourages people from doing criminal acts, as they are aware of the potential consequences. To illustrate, CID was a popular Indian crime series, which portrayed how murderers face criminal trials, and eventually they have to face death penalty as per Indian law.

In conclusion, crime novels and dramas are becoming popular among people due to the suspenseful genre which stimulates their critical thinking. Moreover, they become useful tools to create awareness among peeople, who get to know how criminals are punished in the society. This might deter them from getting involved in any illeagal activities.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.0

The response addresses both parts of the prompt: it explains the appeal of suspense and intellectual challenge, and gives a clear positive opinion that crime fiction can raise awareness and discourage offending. The examples of Sherlock Holmes and CID help illustrate these points, and the position remains consistent from the introduction to the conclusion. The explanation of how viewers connect clues is relevant and reasonably extended. However, the claim that crime dramas deter people from crime is presented broadly, with limited qualification or support, and the discussion focuses mainly on intellectual stimulation and punishment rather than exploring a wider range of reasons for popularity. Developing that causal explanation more precisely would make the response more fully convincing and detailed.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.0

The essay has a clear four-paragraph structure, with an introduction, separate paragraphs for the reasons and opinion, and a conclusion. Ideas progress logically: suspense and reasoning are discussed first, followed by the claimed educational value of crime stories. Linking expressions such as “For instance,” “To illustrate,” and “In conclusion” help readers follow the examples and overall argument. The organisation is clear throughout, although some connections are repetitive or slightly mechanical: “These stories” and “Such stories” recur, and the conclusion largely restates the introduction and body points. More varied referencing and a concluding synthesis that adds a final implication would make cohesion feel more flexible and less formulaic.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.5

The response shows an adequate range and some flexibility, using topic-appropriate expressions such as “suspenseful,” “mysterious,” “logical reasoning,” “critical thinking,” and “criminal trials.” These choices communicate the subject clearly, and some less common vocabulary is attempted. However, several collocations and word choices are not fully natural, including “incriminated” for a suspect who is convicted, “doing criminal acts,” and “death penalty” in the context of a general claim about Indian law. There are also spelling errors in “rasie,” “peeople,” and “illeagal.” This combination of useful range and noticeable inaccuracies fits the current level; more precise collocations and careful proofreading would support stronger lexical control.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 7.0

There is a useful mix of simple and complex sentence forms, including subordinate clauses (“as they are intellectually stimulating”), relative clauses (“who enjoy reading such stories”), and a conditional construction (“once the suspect is incriminated”). Many sentences are accurate and easy to follow, and punctuation is generally controlled. Some errors remain in agreement and sentence construction: “the suspense … thoroughly engage the viewers” should use a singular verb, while “stories which challenge their intellect and promotes critical thinking” shifts from plural to singular agreement. In “These stories become meaningful lessons for people who get to know how families … suffer,” the relationship between the ideas is somewhat awkwardly constructed. Greater consistency in agreement and more precise clause construction would improve accuracy while retaining the existing range.

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