Band 8.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 8.0 · 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 8.0)

Nowadays, many people visit famous tourist attractions mainly to take photographs of themselves instead of appreciating the places. This is mainly caused by social media, and I believe it is a negative trend overall.

One important reason for this behaviour is the growing influence of social media platforms such as Instagram and TikTok. People often want to share attractive pictures with their friends and followers and receive likes and comments. As a result, taking a good photograph can become more important than enjoying the actual experience. For example, a tourist visiting the Eiffel Tower may spend a considerable amount of time taking selfies rather than learning about its history or enjoying the view.

Another reason is that photographs can show others that a person has visited a popular destination. Some people feel pressure to appear successful, adventurous, or fashionable online. Therefore, they may visit famous places simply because they are popular on social media.

In my opinion, this is mostly a negative development. When people concentrate on taking photographs, they may fail to appreciate the cultural, historical, and natural value of the places they visit. In addition, large numbers of tourists stopping to take pictures can cause overcrowding and inconvenience other visitors. For instance, at famous landmarks, people sometimes spend several minutes taking selfies while blocking pathways.

However, photography can also have benefits. Pictures allow people to preserve memories and encourage others to discover new destinations. Nevertheless, I believe visitors should focus more on experiencing a place than on creating content for social media.

In conclusion, social media and the desire for online attention are the main reasons for this trend. Although taking photographs has some advantages, it is generally negative because it can reduce people's appreciation of the places they visit.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 8.0

The response fully addresses all parts of the task. You clearly identify the reasons for the trend—specifically the influence of social media and the desire for social validation—and you maintain a consistent position that this is a negative development. The ideas are well-developed, with relevant examples such as the Eiffel Tower scenario and the issue of overcrowding at landmarks. The response is balanced, as you acknowledge the potential benefits of photography before refuting them to support your main argument. The structure is logical and the content is directly relevant to the prompt throughout.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 8.0

The essay is logically organized with a clear progression of ideas. Each paragraph has a central theme, and the transition between the reasons for the trend and your opinion on its impact is smooth. You use a range of cohesive devices effectively, such as 'As a result,' 'Therefore,' 'In addition,' and 'Nevertheless.' Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate distinct points. The flow of the argument is natural, and the relationship between sentences is clear, making the text easy to follow from start to finish.

Lexical Resource — Band 7.0

You demonstrate a sufficient range of vocabulary to discuss the topic with precision. Phrases like 'growing influence,' 'social validation,' 'cultural, historical, and natural value,' and 'inconvenience other visitors' show a good command of language. While the vocabulary is accurate and appropriate for the context, it is functional rather than highly sophisticated. To reach a higher band, you could incorporate more nuanced collocations or idiomatic expressions related to tourism and digital behavior. However, there are no spelling or word-choice errors that impede communication.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 8.0

The response displays a good variety of complex structures, such as conditional-like constructions and subordinate clauses (e.g., 'When people concentrate on taking photographs, they may fail to appreciate...'). The majority of your sentences are error-free, and your control over punctuation and tense usage is consistent. There are no significant grammatical errors that distract the reader. The sentence structures are varied, moving between simple, compound, and complex forms, which provides a natural rhythm to your writing.

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