Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-08-07

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

More and more people nowadays visit well-known places to take photographs of themselves, without looking at the place.

Why do you think this is happening?

Is it a positive or a negative trend?

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

Student answer (Band 6.5)

With the advent of ICT tools in general and camera in particular, it has been noticed that a greater number of people who visit renowned places only take pictures of themselves without really observing the place. This essay will examine the reasons why people behave that way. It will also give some positive and negative aspects of this trend using examples from personal experience.

To start with, one of reasons why people generally take pictures of places is to post them via social media and follow the trend. It is common to see pictures of people visiting tourist places or people on holidays. This helps them to do like others and look fashion or updated.

Also, posting pictures enables them to show off and tell other people where they have been and the type of places they can afford to be.

This trend can be positive as well as negative.

The negative side of taking pictures of areas visited is that, the person does not fully enjoy the time spent. For example, when you go to visit a museum, instead of discovering or learning about the different artistic objects being displayed you only snap. This hinders you to enjoy the moment.

Again, taking pictures which requires you to permanently use your camera or phone, creates a boundary between you and people around you. For example, during a family dinner in a hotel, my cousin kept on taking pictures with her phone and could not even communicate with the rest of the family which was not appropriate.

On the other hand, taking pictures of known places helps to keep souvenirs of those areas in other to share them with your love ones who could not attend.

To conclude, taking pictures of well-known places has become fashion nowadays. People usually do it to show off, or to share souvenirs. The disadvantage is that, it hinders people to fully enjoy their outings. I think that people should enjoy the moment they spend in those places first and later on they can take few photographs as souvenirs.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The response addresses all parts of the prompt, identifying reasons for the trend (social media influence, showing off) and discussing both positive and negative aspects. The position is clear throughout. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited; for instance, the explanation of why people 'follow the trend' could be more deeply explored. The positive aspect is mentioned briefly at the end, but it lacks the depth of the negative arguments. To reach a higher band, ensure that all parts of the prompt are balanced in terms of depth and supporting evidence.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The essay is logically organized with a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate different ideas. Cohesive devices such as 'To start with', 'Also', and 'On the other hand' are used to guide the reader. However, some transitions are a bit mechanical, and there is occasional awkwardness in phrasing, such as 'This hinders you to enjoy the moment', which affects the flow. Overall, the progression of ideas is clear, and the structure supports the reader's understanding of the argument.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, allowing the writer to express their ideas clearly. There are some attempts at less common vocabulary, such as 'advent' and 'renowned'. However, there are instances of imprecise word choice and collocation errors, such as 'look fashion or updated' instead of 'look fashionable or up-to-date', and 'keep souvenirs' instead of 'keep memories' or 'preserve memories'. These errors do not impede communication but indicate a need for more precise lexical control.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are frequent grammatical errors, particularly with articles, prepositions, and verb patterns (e.g., 'one of reasons', 'hinders you to enjoy', 'in other to share'). Some sentences are slightly clunky, such as 'taking pictures which requires you to permanently use your camera'. While these errors do not prevent the reader from understanding the message, they are frequent enough to prevent a higher score. More attention to subject-verb agreement and correct prepositional usage is recommended.

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