Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · 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 5.5)

Global fashion trends now play a vital role role in influencing what people wear across the globe. This essay will examine the reasons behind this strong influence and contend that it represents a negative or a positive development for society.

I believe, it's a negative development or an impact on public because nowadays social media like tiktok, Instagram, Facebook and celebrity culture constantly promotes what famous influencers and celebrities are wearing.

As a result, young people feel pressure to copy these trends to look more fashionable and accepted. In addition, big multinational companies like Zara, Gucci, Channel H&M etc. are also involved in this case by showing off or advertising their newly launched trendy articles.

Online shopping has also made it very easy for people to buy international brands with just just one click.

Second thing is the loss of traditional clothing and cultural identity. For example, in many Asian and Middle Eastern countries wear T-shirts over their traditional dress.

Global fashion encourages consumerism and waste because trends changes every few months, forcing people to buy new clothes or any product even if it's worthy or not. For example few months ago there was a trend of a toy which is called Labubu doll. Out of nowhere it just got viral because of one or two famous celebrities. So it causes a massive increase in sales.

In conclusion, global fashion has gained an influence because of social and advertising.

However, I am of the opinion that this is a negative development because it damages cultural heritage, harms the environment and creates financial problems for people.

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response5.5
Coherence and Cohesion5.5
Lexical Resource5.5
Grammatical Range and Accuracy5.0
Overall5.5

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses both parts of the prompt: the reasons for the influence of global fashion and the evaluation of whether this is positive or negative. However, the development is somewhat uneven. While the reasons (social media, celebrity culture, and online shopping) are clear, the discussion on the negative impacts, such as the loss of cultural identity and environmental concerns, is a bit brief. The position is clear throughout, but the essay would benefit from more depth in the analysis of the 'positive' side of the argument, even if only to acknowledge it before refuting it, to ensure a more balanced and comprehensive response.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, with a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Cohesive devices are used, such as 'In addition', 'As a result', and 'However', which help guide the reader. However, some transitions are a bit mechanical or repetitive. For instance, the start of the second body paragraph, 'Second thing is...', is informal and lacks sophistication. Additionally, the referencing is occasionally slightly unclear, such as in the sentence '...involved in this case by showing off...', where the antecedent for 'this case' is not explicitly defined. Overall, the progression of ideas is coherent.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, allowing the writer to express their ideas clearly. There are some attempts at less common vocabulary, such as 'multinational companies', 'consumerism', and 'cultural heritage'. However, there are instances of word-choice errors and repetition, such as 'role role' and 'just just'. Some phrasing is also slightly informal or imprecise, such as 'trendy articles' or 'out of nowhere it just got viral'. To reach a higher band, the student should focus on more precise collocations and avoid repetitive or redundant phrasing.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are several grammatical errors that persist throughout the text. Examples include 'it's a negative development or an impact on public' (missing article), 'trends changes' (subject-verb agreement), and 'in many Asian and Middle Eastern countries wear T-shirts' (incorrect sentence structure). Punctuation is mostly functional, but there are minor errors, such as the comma splice in 'I believe, it's a negative development'. The student needs to focus on subject-verb agreement and article usage to improve accuracy.

See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.

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