Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-08-21

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)

In recent times, an increasing number of people visit popular places to capture themselves without looking at the place. This is a negative trend. This essay will discuss the reasons for this.

A good number of persons visit popular places due to hype. Their aim is not always to get a view of the place but to take photographs of themselves in the place. This is done to join the trend of persons who have visited the place previously. This is a negative trend as fun is reduced and information about the popular place is lost. Most well-known places have historical representation that can only be acquired by having a tour of the environment outside our mobile phones or digital cameras. For example, most individuals visit the Eiffel tower in Paris just to take photographs, without having a good view of the place. They are often times not interested in the history or knowledge they could acquire by just the mere visit.

Furthermore, fun is also lost. When visiting well-known places, we tend to live through our lenes than through our own eyes. This prevents individuals from living in the moment and have fun. They have no fun memories of the place but only photos to show. The main interest of visiting any place is for fun and to acquire knowledge. For instance, a visit to Ikogosi resort in Ekiti state, Nigeria is for recreational benefits. This includes fun and interacting with the natural environment. The purpose of this is defeated when the major aim of most individuals is to visit and take only pictures.

Although taking photographs can help in the documentation of our visit but it is not always ideal. Living through our cameras reduces fun and the knowledge we stand to gain from our visit.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response addresses both parts of the prompt: the reasons for the trend and the evaluation of whether it is positive or negative. The position is clear from the introduction. However, the development of ideas is somewhat repetitive. For instance, the argument about 'fun' is mentioned in both the second and third paragraphs without significant new depth. To reach a higher band, you should expand on the underlying psychological reasons for this behavior, such as the influence of social media validation or the 'fear of missing out' (FOMO), rather than just reiterating that it reduces enjoyment. The examples provided are relevant, but the analysis could be more nuanced.

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 distinct ideas. Cohesive devices such as 'Furthermore', 'For example', and 'Although' are used to link sentences and ideas. However, some transitions feel slightly mechanical, and the flow between sentences could be smoother. For example, the transition from the first body paragraph to the second is functional but could be more sophisticated. Overall, the progression of ideas is clear, and the reader can easily follow your line of reasoning throughout the text.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, allowing you to express your ideas clearly. You use some topic-specific vocabulary like 'recreational benefits' and 'documentation'. However, there is a reliance on simpler phrasing, such as 'a good number of persons' and 'have fun'. To improve, try to incorporate more precise collocations and less common lexical items. For instance, instead of 'have fun', you could use 'derive enjoyment' or 'enrich their experience'. There are no significant spelling errors, and the word choices are generally accurate, though they lack the sophistication required for a higher band.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

You demonstrate a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is always clear, there are some grammatical slips, such as 'living through our lenes' (spelling error) and 'have no fun memories... but only photos to show' (awkward phrasing). Additionally, 'often times' should be 'oftentimes' or 'often'. You attempt complex structures, but they are not always perfectly controlled. To achieve a higher score, focus on increasing the variety of your sentence structures and ensuring that subject-verb agreement and preposition usage are consistently accurate throughout the essay.

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

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