Band 7.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.0 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-07-29

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Some people have decided to reduce the number of times they fly every year or to stop flying altogether.

Do you think the environmental benefits of this development outweigh the disadvantages for individuals and businesses?

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

Student answer (Band 7.0)

In recent times, there has been a long debate about the effects of flying on the environment around us. With the detrimental effects in mind, some individuals have decided to decrease their flying amount or stop flying altogether. I believe this will cause many positive changes which will outweigh the disadvantages.

Flying by plane or private jets cause a lot of pollution to the planet. They help in the release of large amounts of carbon emissions which deeply impact agriculture and health of many individuals. For instance, these harmful gases reduce the fertility of soil and therefore impact the crop by injecting it with chemicals. These chemicals effect many citizens causing them with various health issues. In order to save the future, it is important to take sustainable practices helping the environment.

Along with polluting the air, these air transportations take up a lot of area and ground. In order to built such grounds for landing, deforestation takes place on a major level. Cutting of trees in a huge amount can account to climate changes in the country.

Admittedly, businesses and individuals will greatly suffer from the cost of not being able to travel in flight. Many businesses will face a huge loss to shift from air to road transport of goods and products. In comparison to flying, cars and trains take a lot more time to travel in large distances. Individuals need to account more time for travelling in cases of work or to meet their oversees family.

While these setbacks are hard to manage at first, I believe it would be worth it for the environment.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0

The response addresses all parts of the prompt, clearly stating a position that the environmental benefits outweigh the disadvantages. The ideas are relevant, though the development is somewhat limited. For instance, the argument regarding soil fertility and chemical injection is a bit vague and lacks a strong logical link to aviation emissions. While the disadvantages for businesses and individuals are mentioned, they could be explored with more depth to provide a more balanced discussion. Overall, the response is clear and maintains a consistent position throughout, meeting the requirements for a Band 6.5 or 7.0 level of task response.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.5

The essay is logically organized with a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Each paragraph has a central topic, such as environmental impact or economic disadvantages. Cohesive devices are used, such as 'In order to', 'Along with', and 'In comparison to', though some transitions feel slightly mechanical. The progression of ideas is generally smooth, although the link between the environmental impact of airports and deforestation could be more explicitly connected to the main argument. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate distinct points, which helps the reader follow the argument easily.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.5

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task. You use some good topic-specific terms like 'carbon emissions', 'sustainable practices', and 'deforestation'. However, there are some inaccuracies in word choice and collocation, such as 'flying amount' instead of 'frequency of flying', 'impact the crop' instead of 'affect crops', and 'account more time' instead of 'allocate more time'. These errors do not impede communication, but they prevent the essay from reaching a higher band. Expanding your range of academic collocations would significantly improve the sophistication of your writing.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.5

You demonstrate a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are several grammatical errors, such as 'Flying... cause' (subject-verb agreement), 'these chemicals effect' (should be 'affect'), and 'causing them with various health issues' (incorrect preposition). Additionally, 'In order to built' should be 'In order to build'. While these errors are noticeable, they do not prevent the reader from understanding your meaning. To improve, focus on subject-verb agreement and the correct usage of verbs versus nouns (affect/effect) and infinitive forms after 'to'.

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