Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-11-01

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)

In the current era, fashion around the globe has become one of the most influential aspect of people live's as everyone wants to stay up to date. This, not just impacts a single area of one's life but it has been expanded to certain aspects. In my opinion, this is an increasingly negative development. Although, global fashion trends are important for staying up to date but its major drawbacks such as forsaking the culture, ethnic and social jeopardisation, fashion as a cult, affordability and environmental impact.

One of the major reasons is pollution, factories use a large amounts of water to produce clothing and wearables as in competing their rivals producing fashionable clothes.For instance, in recent times; baggy fit clothes are in trend so more and more factories are manufacturing these type of clothing to stay ahead in business in turn using tons of water and generating huge amount of waste into open drains which not only affects the habitat of fish and polluting water for local communities but also contaminates soil. Another major reason is the affordability, a lot of trends from developed countries; when reach in 3rd world countries tend to be way more expensive than local fashion. Young generation tends to spend huge share of their money on such trends to stay acceptable in the fashion society but they end up casuing a lot of damage to their budgets.

Moreover, Fashion is now being followed as a cult. People tend to follow new trends just to have a status in the society and they would not accept anyone who's following tradition.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You give a clear negative view and develop relevant concerns, especially pollution and the financial pressure on young people. The example of factories producing baggy clothes helps illustrate the environmental point. However, the task asks both how global fashion became so influential and whether this is positive or negative. Your response mainly explains why you consider it negative; it gives little account of the causes of its influence, such as social media, advertising, celebrity culture, or international retail. The opening lists several drawbacks, including cultural loss, but these are not all explained, and the final paragraph about fashion as a cult is brief. Address both questions more evenly and support each main idea with fuller explanation or an example.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has an identifiable structure: an introduction, a paragraph on pollution and affordability, and a final point about social status. Linking expressions such as “For instance” and “Moreover” help signal examples and an additional idea. However, progression is limited because the essay does not develop the question about how global fashion gained influence, and the final paragraph ends without a concluding summary. Some connections are unclear or mechanical: the opening sentence after your opinion lists drawbacks in a fragment, while “Another major reason” does not clearly specify whether it refers to a reason for fashion’s influence or a reason for its negative effects. Organise paragraphs around the two task questions and use clearer topic sentences and references.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You attempt a range of topic-related vocabulary, including “global fashion trends,” “affordability,” “pollution,” and “status in the society.” These choices make your main concerns understandable, and phrases such as “stay up to date” are relevant to the topic. However, several inaccurate or unnatural expressions reduce precision: “people live’s,” “ethnic and social jeopardisation,” “fashion society,” and “generating huge amount of waste into open drains.” Spelling errors such as “casuing” also affect the overall impression. Aim for accurate collocations and use specific terms rather than abstract or unclear wording. For example, describe “cultural identity” or “social pressure” directly, and explain what is being polluted and how.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and complex sentences, including a cause-and-effect sentence beginning “For instance” and a relative clause describing the effects on fish and local communities. However, control is inconsistent, and errors sometimes make relationships between ideas difficult to follow. Examples include “one of the most influential aspect,” “a large amounts,” and “Young generation tends,” where agreement or article/plural forms are faulty. The opening also contains an incomplete construction: “Although … but …,” and the sentence beginning “Although” is not properly connected to the main clause. Punctuation is unreliable, particularly around the semicolon after “recent times” and the run-on spacing before “For instance.” Practise accurate sentence boundaries and check agreement, articles, and clause structure.

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