Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-08-09

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)

Undoubtedly, clicking selfies at popular places has become a recent trend in today's world. Although, many people believe that individuals visit these well known places only to capture the photographs, without even admiring the beauty of those places.

To commence, there are several reasons why people nowadays visit popular spots only to take pictures. One major reason is that today's generation is addicted to their digital devices and they only visit well known places to post stories on social media. To explain, individuals today are highly influenced by what they consume online, if they see content creators visiting such places, they would follow their footsteps and then latter post the picture they captured on social media to show the world that they went to the same place as that famous person. As a result, the people have forgotten how to live in the moment and admire the charm of well known places.

However, overall this is a negative trend that people are following in the contemporary world because not only do they fail to see the stunning places but they are also loosing the value of the human relations. Since, people are always on their phone just taking photographs, they forget to live in the present with their loved ones. Whereas, on social media they are depicting having fun with their family and friends. For instance, people are going to visit Korea to see cherry blossoms, then clicking and taking pictures only and not spending quality time with their kin. Consequently, this trend has made people closer to the social media and moved away from their family and friends.

In conclusion, the growing phenomenon of individuals visiting iconic destinations solely to take photographs is primarily driven by an obsession with social media validation and digital replication. I firmly believe that this is a highly negative development, as it promotes a superficial engagement with beautiful landmarks while simultaneously eroding meaningful, real-world connections with loved ones. Moving forward, travelers should prioritize experiencing the present moment over curating an idealized online persona.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0

The response addresses all parts of the prompt, providing clear reasons for the trend and a firm stance on its negative nature. The ideas are well-developed, particularly the link between social media validation and the erosion of real-world experiences. The example regarding travel to Korea is relevant and effectively supports the argument. The position is consistent throughout the essay, and the conclusion provides a strong summary of the main points. To reach a higher band, ensure that the analysis of why this is happening is slightly more nuanced, perhaps by exploring the psychological need for digital archiving beyond just social media validation.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The essay is logically organized with a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Cohesive devices such as 'To commence', 'As a result', 'However', and 'Consequently' are used effectively to guide the reader through the argument. Paragraphing is used appropriately, with each paragraph focusing on a central theme. While the flow is generally smooth, some transitions could be more sophisticated to avoid a slightly mechanical feel. Overall, the progression of ideas is clear and easy to follow throughout the response.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.5

The vocabulary is sufficient to convey ideas with precision. You use some good collocations and topic-specific language such as 'social media validation', 'digital replication', and 'curating an idealized online persona'. There are some minor errors in word choice, such as 'loosing' (should be 'losing') and 'latter' (should be 'later'). While the range is adequate, incorporating a few more sophisticated synonyms or idiomatic expressions would enhance the lexical variety. The current range is sufficient for a band 7, as the meaning is always clear and the vocabulary is appropriate for the task.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.5

The essay demonstrates a good mix of simple and complex sentence structures. You show control over complex sentences, such as 'Although, many people believe that individuals visit these well known places only to capture the photographs, without even admiring the beauty of those places.' However, there are some punctuation and grammatical errors, such as the unnecessary comma after 'Although' and the incorrect use of 'Since' at the start of a sentence fragment. Despite these occasional errors, the majority of sentences are error-free, and the mistakes do not impede communication. Increased attention to comma usage and sentence fragments would improve the score.

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