Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-10-28

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 5.5)

It is often seen that prestigious places are overcrowded with people who visit to take photographs of themselves, and they are not paying attention to that particular location. This is happening among individuals due to some circumstances, and I think it can have both negative and positive effects on people as well as the places. In this essay, I will explain the reasons behind this trend and its advantages and disadvantages in the ensuing paragraphs.

The first and foremost reason why people are interested in having photos of themselves is that they want to create content for their social profiles as a source of income. This can be seen on social media; everyone has their public accounts, such as on Instagram and Facebook, for which they are required to post their regular activities so that they attract more viewers and earn more money with their likes and shares. For example, there are many vloggers who always visit historical places only to take photos; even then, they cannot post a single picture about that particular location. Additionally, individuals would like to have memories while they are on family trips, regardless of capturing the beauty of that destination. In this case, they normally take group photographs with their loved ones and intentionally ignore learning about the historical background.

The major positive development of having such habits among people can improve their relationships with their loved ones, and they can enjoy their life. This is because when they are paying attention on each other when they are just visiting places to capture moments with their family members only could strengthen their close relations .

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

You address both questions by suggesting social-media income and family memories as reasons, then presenting a positive effect on relationships. However, the response only partially fulfils the task because the judgement of whether this is positive or negative is not clearly resolved: the introduction says it has “both negative and positive effects,” but the body develops only a positive effect and does not explain the negative side. The reasons are relevant, but some claims need clearer explanation—for instance, the link between posting regular activities and earning money is asserted rather than supported, and the example about vloggers is difficult to follow. State a definite overall view and develop each reason and effect with a specific explanation or example.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure, with an introduction, a paragraph explaining reasons, and a paragraph on a positive effect. Linking phrases such as “Additionally” and “For example” help signal relationships between ideas. However, progression is incomplete: the introduction promises both advantages and disadvantages, while the final paragraph discusses only a positive outcome, and there is no concluding paragraph to bring the argument together. Some connections are also unclear, particularly the example about vloggers who “cannot post a single picture” of the location, which seems to conflict with the preceding point about creating social-media content. Organise the body around the two task questions and use clearer references so each example directly supports its main idea.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of vocabulary for the topic, including “overcrowded,” “historical background,” “social profiles,” and “strengthen their close relations.” These choices allow you to discuss tourism, social media, and family experiences. There are also attempts at more formal phrasing, such as “the ensuing paragraphs,” though this sounds unnecessarily elaborate in context. Some word choices and collocations are imprecise: “prestigious places” is not the most natural description of popular tourist sites, and “paying attention on each other” does not express the intended idea accurately. Aim for natural, precise combinations rather than formal-sounding phrases, and check that each expression conveys the intended meaning.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, including clauses introduced by “because,” “so that,” and “while.” Most of the meaning remains understandable, and the opening sentence shows an attempt to combine related information. Some grammatical errors remain, especially in the final sentence: “when they are paying attention on each other when they are just visiting places” has an unclear clause structure, and “could strengthen” does not fit smoothly with the surrounding present-tense statement. There are also awkward constructions such as “the major positive development … can improve,” where the subject and verb relationship is unclear. Practise building shorter, controlled sentences first, then combine ideas while checking clause structure, tense consistency, and punctuation.

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