Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Barron's Writing · 2026-08-21

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 6.5)

Nowadays many people prefer take outs, dining in, and ready to eat meals over fresh home made food due to high convenience, availability, and affordability. However, the drawbacks like less nutritional value and risk of diseases are concerning.

On one hand, many working professional eat out or rely on frozen food as it is less time consuming and readily available. Due to growing number of food outlets, people can walk to the nearest food store and buy a meal instead of spending a ton of time preparing one after a hectic workday. Readily available packaged meals gives them the flexibility to stay focused and allocate more time to their work. Moreover, frozen food is low priced as it is processed and packed for a long time. Consequently, it is budget-friendly in comparison to fresh produce, which in turn is convenient option for families trying to manage their budget on grocery bills.

On the other hand, the demerits of this way of eating are alarming. Food served at commercial establishments is often prepared and frozen days ago. Hence, the nutritional value depletes over the time, which in turn impacts overall health of a person at a young age. Consuming outside continuously can lead to various diseases like diabetes, obesity, and high blood pressure as the meal served lacks important nutrition and affects the metabolism and growth of an individual.

To recapitulate, the demerits of eating out include high exposure to diseases whereas the benefits are easily accessible and time-saving. Therefore, it depends on a person to weigh the benefits and demerits and consume accordingly.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The response addresses both the advantages and disadvantages of relying on convenience food. The position is clear from the introduction, and the main body paragraphs provide relevant arguments such as time-saving and affordability for advantages, and health risks for disadvantages. However, the development of these ideas is somewhat limited. For instance, the point about 'nutritional value depletes' could be further supported with specific examples of how processing affects vitamins or minerals. While the task is fully addressed, the depth of analysis remains at a general level, which is characteristic of a Band 6.5 or 7.0 response.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The essay is logically organized with a clear introduction, two body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Cohesive devices such as 'On one hand', 'Moreover', 'Consequently', and 'To recapitulate' are used effectively to guide the reader through the argument. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate the advantages from the disadvantages. The progression of ideas is smooth, although some transitions feel slightly mechanical. Overall, the structure is clear and supports the development of the topic well.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.5

The vocabulary is generally appropriate and sufficient for the task. The student uses terms like 'hectic workday', 'budget-friendly', and 'nutritional value' correctly. There are some minor issues with collocation and word choice, such as 'consuming outside' (should be 'eating out') and 'depletes over the time' (should be 'depletes over time'). While the range is adequate to convey meaning clearly, it lacks the more sophisticated or precise lexical items that would push the score into the higher bands.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are several grammatical errors, such as 'many working professional eat out' (should be 'professionals'), 'packaged meals gives' (should be 'give'), and 'impacts overall health of a person' (should be 'the overall health'). While these errors are noticeable, they do not impede communication. The student demonstrates a reasonable grasp of grammar, but the frequency of these minor errors prevents a higher score. More consistent control over subject-verb agreement and article usage is needed.

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