Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-08-06

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Some consumers are increasingly choosing to buy goods that are produced in their local area, rather than imported goods.

What are the reasons for this?

Is this 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)

Few buyers are increasingly selecting to buy products that are manufactured in their local area, instead of buying imported good. There is no denying that this trend is everywhere around the world, because it is really crucial for most people to support this idea as it has a lot of good points. But, there are certain drawbacks too which can not be ignored. However, I am going to explain both the postive and negative side in paragraphs with some related examples.

To begin with, for boosting the economy. In this contemporary world people prefer to support their country and try to enahnce their overall economy by supporting the manufacters from the local area, by buying goods from their area rather than importing it from overseas. For example, several countries have temporarily restricted imports and exports to protect domestic industries, leading to economic growth in some cases. Moreover, there would be less competition amongst the business owners, as they do not have to worry about competing their products with the entire world, they can simply compete with other owners within the area, which will further lead to becoming more profitable in a business.

Apart from this, there are certain negative sides of this trend, which should not be ignored. Firstly, individuals will certainly face limited source problems. Some countries do not produce enough raw materials or essential goods. Banning imports can lead to shortages. To cite an example, countries with unsuitable climates cannot produce enough tea domestically. If imports are restricted, consumers may face shortages and significantly higher prices. Apart from this, Other countries may impose trade restrictions in return (trade wars). This can reduce exports and harm the economy. This may damage the international relations between the countries worldwide.

To conclude, although this trend has both advantages and disadvantages, I believe that imports should be restricted rather than completely banned, as international trade remains essential for economic growth while limited imports can help protect domestic industries.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The response addresses all parts of the prompt, identifying reasons for the trend and discussing both positive and negative aspects. The position is clear throughout. However, the development of ideas is somewhat uneven. While the economic benefits are mentioned, the explanation of 'less competition' is slightly contradictory to standard economic theory, which suggests that local businesses often benefit from the competitive pressure of global markets. The conclusion is a bit abrupt and introduces a new nuance (restricting vs. banning) that was not fully explored in the body paragraphs. To reach a higher band, ensure that each point is supported by more robust, logical reasoning rather than just stating the idea.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The essay is logically organized with clear paragraphing. Each paragraph has a central topic, and the progression of ideas is generally easy to follow. Cohesive devices such as 'To begin with', 'Apart from this', and 'To conclude' are used effectively to signal the structure. However, there are instances where the flow feels slightly mechanical, and some transitions between sentences within paragraphs could be smoother. For example, the shift from discussing local production to international relations in the third paragraph is a bit sudden. Overall, the essay maintains a clear, coherent structure throughout.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, allowing the writer to convey their ideas clearly. There are some attempts at less common vocabulary, such as 'contemporary world' and 'domestic industries'. However, there are some inaccuracies in word choice and collocation, such as 'limited source problems' instead of 'supply shortages' and 'competing their products' instead of 'competing with their products'. Spelling errors like 'enahnce' and 'manufacters' also occur. To improve, the student should focus on using more precise collocations and ensuring accurate spelling of key terms.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are frequent grammatical errors, such as 'Few buyers are increasingly selecting' (which should be 'More buyers') and 'instead of buying imported good' (should be 'goods'). There are also issues with article usage and subject-verb agreement, such as 'Other countries may impose trade restrictions in return'. While these errors do not impede communication, they are frequent enough to prevent a higher score. Increasing the variety of complex structures while focusing on error-free production would help improve this score.

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