Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-08-14

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)

Travelling, today, has become more of a prestigious status to be maintained in society rather than an emphasis on learning through exploration. It has replaced the values of educational and vocational achievements through demonstrations of people being highlighted in pictures giving them a sense of gullibility to satisfy their passionate minds. In my opinion, this is a negative trend which should not be facilitated in our lives as I would elaborate my points of view further.

Social media platforms play a humongous role in the portrayals of such events where numerous people are following each other and their idols and try to imitate them in a similar way. For instance, I remember one of my relatives visiting a beach for its picturesque details and posting pictures online of each and every minutest thing done by them which in turn created an urge between some other people to go there and act accordingly without even an acknowledgement behind its history. This has simply lead people unknowingly to ignore the beauty of those places and satisfy their superiority over others.

Earlier people used to research a lot about the places they used to visit making an itinerary to not leave any stone unturned in their journey. For example, I remember visiting a fort and a museum with my family with the help of a tourist guide who acknowledged us with the stories associated with these places and how they came into existence. I used to share those things with my friends and family so they would get an idea if they visit next time. We created memories and strengthened bonds coming together which is seen lacking today.

On the whole, these negative trends should be positively addressed and attributed if people not only click pictures of these well-known places but also recognize the talent hidden behind such treasures constructed by primitive men and should appreciate their beauty too.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The response addresses both parts of the prompt: the reasons for the trend and the opinion on whether it is positive or negative. The position is clear from the introduction. However, the development of ideas is somewhat uneven. While the explanation regarding social media influence is relevant, the term 'gullibility' is used incorrectly in context, and the argument about 'superiority' could be more clearly linked to the psychological motivations of the trend. The conclusion is a bit brief and could have better summarised the main points. Overall, the response covers the requirements but lacks the depth of analysis required for a higher band.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The essay is logically organised with a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate distinct ideas. Cohesive devices such as 'For instance', 'Earlier', and 'On the whole' are used to guide the reader. However, some transitions are slightly mechanical, and the flow between sentences is occasionally interrupted by awkward phrasing, such as 'attributed if people not only click pictures'. Despite these minor issues, the progression of ideas is generally easy to follow throughout the text.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, attempting some less common items like 'prestigious', 'itinerary', and 'primitive'. However, there are instances of imprecise word choice and collocation errors that hinder precision. For example, 'sense of gullibility' is used incorrectly to describe the motivation for taking photos, and 'humongous' is too informal for an academic essay. Additionally, 'lead' is used instead of the past participle 'led'. While the vocabulary is sufficient to convey the message, it lacks the sophistication and consistent accuracy required for a higher band.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There is an attempt at complex grammar, but it is marred by frequent errors in syntax and punctuation. For instance, 'I would elaborate my points of view further' is slightly unnatural, and there are issues with comma usage and subject-verb agreement, such as 'this has simply lead people'. While these errors do not prevent the reader from understanding the main points, they occur frequently enough to impact the overall fluency and accuracy of the writing.

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

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