Band 7.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.0 · IELTS Summit Mastery · 2026-10-01

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 7.0)

Tourism is a boon and a bane to the society. Where as it has boosted economies and expanded cultural ties, the inherent consumeristic nature of the activity has had far reaching adverse impacts on the environment and local cultures.

For a region to cater to, and invite, tourists in high numbers, it builds infrastructures and amenities to the likes of hotels, amusement parks, restaurants, etc. While they boost the economy, excessive construction activites weaken the geological and ecological balance of its natural environment. Unpredictable landslides in India's Uttarakhand region is the most recent example of this. Deforestation and construction activities led to structural degradation of the hills.

Increased human activity also lead to pollution, especially in the absence of regulations and penalties for wrongdoers. Singapore is model example in this case, where fines, alongwith civic sense, keep tourists from littering the roads.

Tourism can also harm the local culture of a region, tainting customs and traditions - that is looked down upon by the residents. Preserving local, minority heritage is of utmost importance to a community. Unchecked entry of 'outsiders' can feel invasive for them. For instance, tribal areas in India often either disallow or heavily restrict tourism activites in an effort to preserve their customs, traditions and centuries old culture.

In the end, even though the benefits of tourism are great, its illeffects outweigh those advantages. Adequate and focused regulations must be in place for environmentally vulnerable regions. At the same time, we must be considerate of communities and cultures, demostrating sensitivity to their traditions.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.0

The response addresses all parts of the task by discussing both the positive economic/cultural ties and the negative environmental and cultural impacts of tourism, while maintaining a clear position that the negative effects outweigh the benefits. Ideas are extended and supported with relevant examples, such as the mention of Uttarakhand and Singapore. However, there is a slight tendency to over-generalise in parts, such as the broad statement regarding tribal areas in India, which is characteristic of this level. To reach a higher band, the main arguments could be even more fully developed with deeper analysis rather than brief illustrative points.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.0

There is a clear logical organisation and progression throughout the essay. The introduction establishes the dual nature of tourism, followed by well-structured body paragraphs addressing infrastructure, pollution, and cultural impact, and a concise conclusion. Cohesive devices are used appropriately to guide the reader through the arguments, such as transitional phrases like 'While they boost the economy' and 'In the end'. Paragraphing is used sufficiently and logically, with each paragraph focusing on a distinct sub-topic. To move beyond this level, referencing and cohesion could be managed even more flexibly and invisibly to ensure absolute seamlessness.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.5

The vocabulary used is generally adequate for the task, with a sufficient range to allow some precision, such as 'consumeristic', 'geological and ecological balance', and 'structural degradation'. The writer attempts less common lexical items with some awareness of style, though there are occasional errors in word choice, form, and spelling, such as 'activites' instead of 'activities', 'model example' instead of 'a model example', 'alongwith', and 'illeffects'. These minor errors do not impede communication, but they prevent the vocabulary score from reaching the higher band, which requires fewer slips and more sustained precision with uncommon items.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.5

The writer demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, incorporating relative clauses and subordinate structures effectively. There are frequent error-free sentences, showing good overall control of grammar and punctuation. However, a few minor errors persist, such as subject-verb agreement issues in 'Increased human activity also lead to pollution' (instead of leads) and minor punctuation or preposition slips like 'to the likes of'. These errors rarely impede communication and fit the profile of a response that possesses a good variety of complex structures alongside some persistent minor inaccuracies.

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