Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-08-20

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

In the future, people may no longer be able to pay for things in shops using cash. All payments may have to be made by card or using phones. Do you think this will happen one day? Why do you think some people might not be happy to give up using cash?

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

 

Student answer (Band 6.0)

The 21st century have experienced various invention and one of them is technology. Technology is playing a vital role in all sector and industries. This essay will shed some light on advantages and drawbacks of digital and card payments in the modern world.

There are several benefits of e-payment method which can not be overlooked. Firstly, I would like to highlight convience as one of the merits of online payment. The consumers can access all the banking needs on the phone. For instance, we do not have to carry any physical cash on daily basis. Secondly, online payments helps us track all our expenses and help us construct a proper monthly budget. To cite an example, a student residing in an another city can easily track all the transaction completed over a period of time. They can be used to anlayse his monthly expenditure and parents can set a proper finance for the child. Electronic payments methods have various advantages and makes it a preferred method of payment on regular basis.

Online payment have few demerits as well which will be discussed in the following paragraph. To exemplify, security is a big concern and people hesitate to use e-payments. According to a recent survey, it was revealed that citizens are victims to numerous banking and payment apps frauds. Education also play an important role in the usage of digital payment method. Consumers need basic knowledge to understand and use the card and mobile payment apps. To illustrate, Frauds have a big impact on the customers mind and they prefer using cash to be safe and secure.

To conclude, technology revolution have changed our lifestyle and forced us to go digital. In my viewpoint online payments are very helpful and gives us easy access to all banking needs. Government should ensure they provide proper information and guidance for the use of e-payments to all citizens.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response addresses both parts of the prompt: the likelihood of a cashless future and the reasons for resistance to this change. However, the development is somewhat uneven. While the benefits of e-payments are clearly outlined, the discussion on why people might be unhappy to give up cash is slightly repetitive, focusing heavily on security concerns. To reach a higher band, you should provide more varied reasons for resistance, such as the digital divide for the elderly or the loss of privacy. The introduction is slightly off-topic as it mentions 'advantages and drawbacks' rather than directly addressing the prompt's specific questions about the future of cash.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The essay is logically organized with clear paragraphing. Each paragraph has a central theme, and the use of cohesive devices like 'Firstly', 'Secondly', and 'To exemplify' helps guide the reader. However, some transitions are mechanical, and the referencing is occasionally weak, such as in the sentence 'They can be used to analyse his monthly expenditure', where 'They' refers back to 'transactions' in a slightly confusing way. The conclusion is brief and summarizes the main points effectively, but the overall flow could be improved by using more sophisticated linking phrases between sentences to create a smoother progression of ideas.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'expenditure', 'merits', and 'digital revolution'. However, there are several instances of word-choice errors and awkward collocations, such as 'construct a proper monthly budget' (instead of 'create' or 'manage'), 'set a proper finance' (incorrect collocation), and 'customers mind' (missing apostrophe). Spelling errors like 'convience' and 'anlayse' also occur. To improve, focus on using more precise academic vocabulary and ensure you proofread for common spelling and collocation mistakes.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. However, there are frequent grammatical errors that affect the accuracy of the writing. Subject-verb agreement is a recurring issue, such as 'The 21st century have experienced' (should be 'has'), 'online payments helps' (should be 'help'), and 'technology revolution have changed' (should be 'has'). Additionally, there are errors with articles and pluralization, such as 'in all sector' (should be 'sectors') and 'on daily basis' (should be 'on a daily basis'). While these errors do not impede communication, they are frequent enough to limit the score.

See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.

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