Band 7.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.0 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-08-04

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Many aspects of the way people dress today are influenced by global fashion trends.

How has global fashion become such a strong influence on people's lives? Do you think this is a positive or negative development?

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

Student answer (Band 7.0)

These days, people's dressing habits are influenced significantly by global fashion trends due to globalization and the development of advertising. Despite the fact that people are spending more money even on unnecessary items, it is an overall positive development.

Because of the use of the internet, countries are becoming increasingly interconnected as well as their citizens. Once a fashionable outfit is recorded and posted on social media, it may go viral within a few days and everybody would start imitating the same way of wearing clothes. In addition to that, the dominant Western culture plays an important role as the majority of people have been influenced by hip-hop culture heavily, leading them to dress up like celebrities they appreciate. Furthermore, a variety of advertisements are ubiquitous in the general public's everyday lives, which are designed to draw individuals' attention to purchase costly items, especially those global brands.

In order to analyse this development thoroughly, we cannot overlook its drawbacks, such as over-consumption. An increasing number of people are spending money on clothes and other items that they do not really need. For example, on a second-hand market website called XianYun, there are a ton of luxurious items on sale because their owners can only wear them in some special occasions. That waste of resources, though, can still be made up as people at least can learn a life lesson after experiencing an impulsive purchase. Regarding the positive side of this development, we must realise the significance of the circulation of resources and personal growth. Firstly, while buyers are spending their money from different countries, the taxes produced from this process can be invested in optimizing infrastructure, namely education and healthcare. Secondly, while people are trying to catch up with the global trend, they naturally take in information and aesthetics from other countries, enabling them to see the big picture.

In conclusion, the reason why more people are following global fashion trends is that they are influenced by the internet and advertisements. Even though this trend might cause the general public to spend more money without realizing, it is still a positive trend as it can generate much more revenue for governments and help personal growth.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0

The response addresses all parts of the prompt, identifying the drivers of global fashion (internet, social media, Western culture) and providing a clear position on whether it is a positive or negative development. The arguments are relevant and well-supported, particularly the discussion on over-consumption versus economic benefits. The ideas are extended, though the argument regarding 'taxes' as a primary benefit of fashion consumption is slightly tenuous and could have been more robustly linked to the prompt. Overall, the position is consistent throughout the essay, and the development of ideas is sufficient to meet the requirements for a Band 7.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The essay is logically organized with a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and conclusion. Each paragraph has a central theme, and the progression of ideas is easy to follow. Cohesive devices such as 'In addition to that', 'Furthermore', and 'In order to analyse this' are used effectively to link sentences and paragraphs. While the transition between the negative and positive aspects in the third paragraph is a bit abrupt, the overall structure remains coherent. The use of referencing is generally clear, and the paragraphing is appropriate for the task.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.5

The vocabulary is generally appropriate and sufficient for the task. The student uses some less common items such as 'ubiquitous', 'interconnected', and 'optimizing', which demonstrate a good range. There are occasional minor inaccuracies in collocation, such as 'spending their money from different countries' (which is slightly awkward) and 'a ton of' (which is too informal for an academic essay). However, the meaning is always clear, and the range of vocabulary allows for some precision in expressing complex ideas about globalization and consumer behavior.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 7.0

The student demonstrates a good mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There is a good use of subordinate clauses, such as 'While buyers are spending their money...' and 'Even though this trend might cause...'. While there are some minor grammatical slips, such as 'everybody would start imitating the same way of wearing clothes' (which could be phrased more naturally) and 'in some special occasions' (should be 'on'), these errors are infrequent and do not impede communication. The majority of the sentences are error-free, showing a solid control of grammar.

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