Band 7.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.0 · Barron's Writing · 2026-08-12

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

A growing number of people rely on restaurants and convenience food (frozen food and packaged meals) rather than home-cooked food to supply most of their meals.

What are the advantages and disadvantages of eating this way?

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

Student answer (Band 7.0)

An increasing number of people are being dependent on restaurants and convenience stores for ready to eat food rather than cooking on their own. This development has both positive and negative effects, which this essay will discuss with relevant reasons and examples.

The utmost benefit of packaged food is in the form of time management as it helps individuals to save a lot of time. Nowadays, each and every individual is dealing with numerous responsibilities whether these are related to their professional needs or personal needs. With the ease of frozen food, they save themselves from following a long procedure of cooking food at home. Moreover, there are well-known food production companies which offer healthy and nutritious food at very reasonable prices and it lasts for months when kept as prescribed. For example, Brar's is a leading food manufacturer in Canada that provides a variety of products from dairy produce to snacks and lunch.

Although frozen food offers great benefits, It also affect the individuals by vanishing their skills to cook and quality time that they spend while cooking. When they cook at their home, they find it more relaxing and feel content by cooking food of their own choice rather than just choosing from a limited number of options. In addition, they can spend quality time with their family and loved ones by having a meal together. For example, people feel more connected and relaxed when they enjoy a dinner with family or friends. This is why people usually invite friends and neighbours for dinner because it improves communication and helps build stronger bonds.

In conclusion, restaurants and convenience stores are an extremely good option when choosing a meal, however, individuals should not only be dependent on ready to eat food and take part in cooking as it improves relationships and provides relaxation.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0

The response addresses both the advantages and disadvantages of relying on convenience food. The position is clear throughout, and the ideas are relevant. The advantages (time management) and disadvantages (loss of cooking skills and social connection) are supported with examples, such as the mention of 'Brar's' and the social aspect of home-cooked meals. To reach a higher band, the development could be more nuanced; for instance, the argument about 'healthy and nutritious' convenience food is a strong point, but it could be balanced by discussing the potential health drawbacks of processed foods to provide a more comprehensive analysis of the topic.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The essay is logically organized with a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Each paragraph has a central theme, and the progression of ideas is easy to follow. Cohesive devices such as 'Moreover', 'Although', 'In addition', and 'In conclusion' are used effectively to link sentences and paragraphs. However, the transition between the second and third paragraphs could be smoother to better contrast the advantages and disadvantages. The paragraphing is appropriate, and the overall structure supports the development of the argument well.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.5

The vocabulary is generally appropriate and sufficient for the task. The student uses some topic-specific terms like 'convenience stores', 'ready to eat food', and 'food production companies'. While the range is adequate, it lacks the more sophisticated or less common lexical items that would characterize a higher band score. There are no significant errors in word choice that impede communication, but the language remains somewhat functional rather than precise or idiomatic. Expanding the range of collocations and using more varied academic vocabulary would improve the score.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.5

The essay demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are some grammatical slips, such as 'It also affect the individuals' (should be 'affects') and 'vanishing their skills' (which is slightly unnatural phrasing). Despite these occasional errors, the meaning is always clear, and the errors do not impede communication. The use of complex sentences is present, but the control is not entirely consistent. To improve, the student should focus on subject-verb agreement and refining the use of gerunds and verb phrases to ensure greater accuracy in more complex constructions.

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

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