Band 7.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.0 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-09-29

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

In some countries, more and more people are hiring a personal fitness trainer, rather than playing sports or doing exercise classes. What are the reasons for this? Is this a positive or a negative development?

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

Student answer (Band 7.0)

In some countries, more and more people are choosing to hire personal fitness trainers instead of playing sports or attending exercise classes. This is mainly because personal trainers provide individual support and flexible training. Although this choice has some benefits, I believe it is a negative development since it can be expensive and reduce social interaction.

One main reason for this trend is that personal trainers create exercise plans according to each persons needs and goals. For example, a trainer can help someone lose weight, build muscle or improve their general health. Another reason is that many people have busy lifestyles. They may not have to attend regular classes or play sports with others. Therefore, private training can be more convenient for them.

However, there are some disadvantages to hiring a personal trainer. Firstly, private training can be quite expensive, especially if a person needs a trainer several times a week. In comparison, playing sports with friends or joining a group exercise classes are usually cheaper. Secondly, people may have fewer opportunities to communicate with others. For instance, sports such as football, basketball or volleyball allow people to make friends and work as a team. Exercise classes can also create a friendly and social environment.

In conclusion, people are increasingly using personal trainers as they want personalised training, motivation and flexible schedules. However, I believe this is a negative development overall. Personal training can be expensive and may reduce social interaction. In my view, playing sports or joining exercise classes can be a better way to stay fit while also meeting new people and enjoying physical activity together.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.0

The response fully addresses all parts of the prompt, exploring both the reasons for hiring a personal trainer and whether this trend is a positive or negative development. Your position is clear from the introduction and is maintained throughout the essay. For example, you state clearly that 'I believe it is a negative development since it can be expensive and reduce social interaction.' Ideas are well-developed and supported with relevant examples, such as comparing the high cost of a personal trainer with the affordability of group classes, and explaining how traditional sports help people 'make friends and work as a team.' The response meets all task requirements effectively, demonstrating a clear understanding of the prompt without unnecessary digressions.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.0

The essay presents a clear logical organization and progression throughout. Each paragraph has a distinct central topic, moving smoothly from the introduction to the reasons in paragraph two, the disadvantages in paragraph three, and a balanced conclusion. You use cohesive devices effectively to guide the reader, such as 'One main reason,' 'Another reason,' 'However,' and 'Firstly.' Paragraphing is used appropriately to structure your arguments. While paragraph-level cohesion is strong, sentence-level referencing could occasionally be more flexible to reach the highest bands, but the current progression is entirely logical, coherent, and easy to follow.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.5

The vocabulary used is generally appropriate and provides a sufficient range for the task. You successfully employ less common and topic-specific vocabulary items such as 'individual support,' 'flexible training,' 'busy lifestyles,' and 'personalised training.' There are occasional minor slip-ups, such as the grammatical slip in 'each persons needs' (missing apostrophe) and a minor phrasing error in 'joining a group exercise classes' (plural/singular mismatch), but these do not impede communication. The lexical range is adequate to convey precise meaning regarding health, fitness, and lifestyle choices.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 7.0

You demonstrate a good mix of simple and complex sentence forms, utilizing structures like conditional clauses, infinitive phrases, and participial phrases (e.g., 'Although this choice has some benefits, I believe...'). There are frequent error-free sentences, and your control of punctuation and grammar is generally solid. While there are a few minor errors—such as 'They may not have to attend regular classes,' which slightly misstates your intended meaning compared to 'They may not have time to attend'—these grammatical inaccuracies are minor and rarely impede communication. The overall grammatical range supports clear, effective expression.

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

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.