Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-08-24

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)

In the upcoming period, individuals might no longer be able to pay for the items in the stores with cash. All modes of payment will be cashless or by card. This essay will discuss my viewpoints on this and also discuss why some groups of people can not completely adapt the cash payment method.

Nowadays, most of the individuals use online payment methods to shop. for example, Apple Wallet and credit or debit cards. People find it heavy to carry cash with them. But some people are aware of government control over our money and in todays era social media tells us all things the government use to control people's lives and this thing will stop the dominance of e-money in future. For instance, last year in my country the internet connection stopped for 3 days and people were not able to do online payments and after that incident people used to carry cash with themselves.

However, in the future people will be more comfortable with electronic money, but the cash will also dominate in some areas like villages and rural areas where people are not used to online payment methods or we can say they like to pay by cash as they find easy to use hard cash. Moreover, the scams on the internet are the reason some of the people will not like to shift on online payments. For example, last week my father's bank account was hacked by a scammer and 10000 rupees were withdrawn by the hacker.

In conclusion, online payments will definitely eliminate the cash, but the ongoing scams and people's trust on cash money will stay forever to avoid scams on the internet.

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 it. The position is clear, although the development of ideas is somewhat inconsistent. For example, the argument regarding government control is introduced but not fully explored, and the conclusion contradicts the earlier suggestion that people will become more comfortable with electronic money. While the ideas are relevant, they lack depth and the transition between the prediction and the reasons for resistance could be more cohesive. To improve, ensure that each paragraph builds logically toward your central argument without introducing conflicting statements.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay is organized into paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the structure. However, the use of cohesive devices is often mechanical or repetitive. Phrases like 'For example' and 'Moreover' are used, but the logical flow between sentences is sometimes disjointed, particularly in the second paragraph where the transition from government control to internet outages feels abrupt. Referencing is occasionally unclear, such as the phrase 'this thing' in the second paragraph, which lacks a precise antecedent. Improving the variety of linking words and ensuring that each sentence flows naturally from the previous one would significantly enhance the coherence of the response.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, allowing the writer to express basic ideas clearly. There are attempts to use topic-specific vocabulary such as 'cashless', 'e-money', and 'online payments'. However, the range is somewhat limited, and there are instances of awkward phrasing, such as 'find it heavy to carry cash' instead of 'find it burdensome' or 'inconvenient'. Additionally, the phrase 'adapt the cash payment method' is incorrect; 'adopt' or 'adapt to' would be more appropriate. To reach a higher band, focus on using more precise collocations and a wider range of academic vocabulary to convey complex ideas more effectively.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The response uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are frequent grammatical errors, such as 'in todays era' (missing apostrophe), 'people used to carry cash' (incorrect tense usage), and 'people's trust on cash' (incorrect preposition; should be 'trust in'). Punctuation is also inconsistent, particularly with capitalization after periods. While these errors do not impede communication, they occur frequently enough to prevent the essay from reaching a higher band. Focusing on subject-verb agreement, correct preposition usage, and consistent punctuation will help improve the accuracy of your writing.

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

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