Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · IELTS Summit Mastery · 2026-07-29

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Tourism is one of the fastest growing industries and contributes a great deal to economies around the world. However, the damage tourism can cause to local cultures and the environment is often ignored.

To what extent do you agree or disagree?

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

Student answer (Band 6.5)

Tourism is a major industry that brings money and creates jobs in many countries. However i agree that tourism has many benefits, its harmful effects on local culture and the environment are often ignored.

On the one hand, tourism helps the economy in many ways. It creates employment in hotels, restaurants ,transport and shopping centres. It also increases the income of local people and helps governments earn money through taxes. For example, many people in northern Pakistan earn their living by providing services to tourists during the summer season.

On the other hand, tourism can seriously harm local cultures and the environment. In popular tourist places, visitors sometimes leave rubbish, pollute rivers and damage natural areas. In addition, local traditions and customs may slowly change because people start following foreign lifestyles to attract tourists. For instance, some historical sites become overcrowded and lose their original beauty due to many visitors.

In my opinion, governments should encourage tourism but also make strict rules to protect nature and local culture. Tourists should be educated to respect local traditions and avoid damaging the environment sustainable tourism can help countries enjoy economic benefits while protecting their heritage.

Conclusion;

In conclusion,i strongly agree that the negative effects of tourism on culture and the environment are often overlooked .Therefore, governments and tourists should work together to make tourism more responsible and sustainable.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

You have addressed all parts of the prompt by acknowledging both the economic benefits and the negative impacts of tourism. Your position is clear throughout the essay. However, the response is under the 250-word minimum, which limits the depth of your arguments. While you provide relevant examples, such as the situation in northern Pakistan and the impact on historical sites, these points could be expanded further to fully develop your ideas. To improve, ensure you meet the word count requirement by elaborating on your examples or adding a more detailed analysis of the consequences of tourism, which would allow you to reach a higher band score.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The essay is logically organized with a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. You use basic cohesive devices such as 'On the one hand', 'On the other hand', 'In addition', and 'For instance' to link your ideas. However, the transition between the final sentence of the fourth paragraph and the conclusion is slightly abrupt. The use of 'Conclusion;' as a header is unnecessary and interrupts the flow of the text. To improve, focus on using a wider variety of cohesive devices and ensure that your paragraphing is seamless without the need for explicit labels.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.5

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'economic benefits', 'overcrowded', and 'sustainable tourism' appropriately. There are some minor issues with punctuation and spacing, such as 'restaurants ,transport' and 'shopping centres'. While your vocabulary is sufficient to convey your meaning clearly, it lacks the sophistication and precision required for higher bands. To improve, try to incorporate more academic collocations and less common lexical items to express your ideas with greater nuance and variety.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.5

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While your meaning is generally clear, there are several grammatical errors, such as the lack of capitalization for 'i' in 'However i agree' and 'i strongly agree'. Additionally, there is a run-on sentence in the fourth paragraph: 'Tourists should be educated to respect local traditions and avoid damaging the environment sustainable tourism can help countries...'. This needs a full stop or a conjunction to separate the two independent clauses. Improving your control over punctuation and sentence boundaries will significantly enhance the accuracy of your writing.

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