Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-10-05

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)

Many buyers are preferring their locally manufactured product over foreign products. There are numerous reasons for this trend, it has a favourable impact on a society, which will be elaborated on in the upcoming paragraphs.

There are several reasons for recent prioritisation of native goods over international items. Firstly, with surge in local small businesses a lot of products are manufactured at reasonable prices, while maintaining top-notch quality. As a result, locals are buying these products to satisfy their needs and at the same time support regional business. For example, families buy many decoratory items produced in their neighbourhood as compared to from marts where imported items are available. Secondly, as more taxes are implemented, the costs of many imported items have risen significantly, making them unaffordable for common man.

This trend has been a positive development. Given, it has fostered many local business, leading to economic growth as well as employment for many. Moreover, locally produced goods are devoid of numerous taxes implemented on international items, this makes national goods cheaper and more affordable to the community. For example, milk from neighbourhood shops is drastically cheaper than branded milk found in marts. This makes availability abundant and product accessible to everyone.

To conclude, there are several reasons for the community to opt for local products, given it is readily available as well as it being more economical for them. This trend has positive impact on a country, as it promotes local businesses which ameliorates the concern of unemployment while providing more reasonably priced products

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

The response addresses all parts of the prompt by discussing both the reasons for buying local goods and evaluating whether this trend is positive or negative. The position is clear throughout the essay. However, some ideas are more fully developed than others, which is characteristic of this level. For instance, the reasons provided in the first body paragraph, such as the mention of taxes driving up the cost of imported items, are somewhat brief and could be extended with further explanation. To reach a higher band, the writer needs to ensure that every main idea is thoroughly explored and supported with deeper analysis rather than brief assertions.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The essay presents a coherent overall arrangement with a clear logical progression from exploring the reasons behind the trend to evaluating its impacts. Paragraphing is used sufficiently to separate distinct points, starting each body paragraph with a clear topical focus. However, cohesion can sometimes feel a bit mechanical, particularly with transitional devices such as 'Firstly' and 'Secondly', and referencing can occasionally lack seamless integration. To progress further, the writer should employ a wider and more flexible variety of cohesive devices and ensure that referencing between sentences is smoother and less predictable.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

The writer demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, attempting some less common lexical items such as 'prioritisation', 'top-notch', and 'ameliorates'. However, there are some inaccuracies in word choice and collocations, such as 'buyers are preferring their locally manufactured product' instead of 'products', and 'decoratory items' instead of 'decorative items'. These errors do not impede communication, but they reflect typical limitations at this band level. To achieve a higher score, the student needs to use less common vocabulary with greater precision, awareness of style, and collocation control, while minimizing word choice slips.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

The response employs a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating an attempt to use varied structures like conditional or dependent clauses. However, there are noticeable errors in grammar and punctuation, such as missing articles ('with surge in local small businesses' should be 'with a surge'), subject-verb agreement issues ('this trend has a favourable impact... which will be elaborated'), and punctuation flaws like comma splices. Fortunately, these errors rarely impede communication and the meaning remains clear throughout. To move up, the writer must increase the frequency of error-free complex sentences and exercise tighter control over articles and prepositions.

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