Band 7.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.0 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-09-06

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Nowadays, a growing number of people with health problems are trying alternative medicines and treatments instead of visiting their usual doctor.

Do you think this is a positive or a negative development?

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

Student answer (Band 7.0)

There is a considerable debate about visiting doctors, some people believe that it is important to visit doctors, while others argue that health issues can be relieved by using over the counter medicines and remedies. Although alternative methods can provide a short term relief, I believe we should consult our doctors.

On the one hand, there is an ongoing trend of taking herbal and homeopathic medications, which are substantially effective in relieving pain and treating diseases. People are finding new alternative ways to prevent the excessive use of antibiotics and various clinical tests, which are rather expensive and laborious. For example, the public is more inclined to natural and effective ways, in order to restrict side effects of frequent use of chemical compounds. In some cases, people can hardly be able to get a doctor's appointment on time, as a result they tend to use over the counter drugs to get immediate relief.

On the other hand, visiting a doctor is the most suitable approach, not only does it provide patients their personalized treatment but also helps them to prevent the use of wrong medicine, which could otherwise cause some serious consequences. Since doctors are professionals, they can give their patients specific medicine regarding for a particular disease by performing various laboratory tests, which automatically reduces the risks of antibiotic resistance.

In my opinion, although using herbal, ayurvedic and OTC drugs are of significant use, depending entirely on alternative methods can pose serious threats. However, we should try to visit doctors whenever our body gives us alarming signs instead of ignoring it and keeping trying remedies.

All things considered, though we should incline to organic treatments during the appearance of early symptoms, if it is not recovering we should definitely visit the doctor after a few days. The disadvantages of over dependence on parallel methods outweigh its advantages.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0

The response addresses all parts of the prompt, providing a clear position that alternative medicine has its place but that professional medical consultation is superior. The ideas are relevant and generally well-developed. For instance, you effectively contrast the convenience of OTC drugs with the risks of self-diagnosis and the benefits of professional laboratory testing. While the argument is logical, some points could be extended further; for example, the discussion on 'antibiotic resistance' is a strong point that could have been linked more explicitly to the dangers of self-medication. Overall, the position is consistent throughout the essay, and the conclusion provides a balanced summary that directly answers the prompt.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The essay is logically organized with a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Each paragraph has a central theme, and the transition between the 'on the one hand' and 'on the other hand' perspectives is clear. You use a range of cohesive devices such as 'Although', 'For example', 'As a result', and 'In my opinion' to link ideas. However, some transitions feel slightly mechanical, and the flow between sentences could be improved by varying the structure of your cohesive links. Paragraphing is used appropriately, and the progression of ideas is easy to follow throughout the text.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.5

You demonstrate a sufficient range of vocabulary to discuss the topic with some precision. Phrases like 'laborious', 'personalized treatment', and 'antibiotic resistance' show an awareness of topic-specific terminology. There are some minor issues with collocation and word choice, such as 'incline to organic treatments' (should be 'incline towards') and 'keeping trying remedies' (which is slightly awkward). Despite these occasional inaccuracies, the vocabulary is adequate to convey your meaning clearly and allows for some flexibility in expression. To reach a higher band, focus on using more sophisticated collocations and ensuring that word forms are used correctly in context.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.5

The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. You successfully employ complex sentences, such as 'Although alternative methods can provide a short term relief, I believe we should consult our doctors.' However, there are some grammatical errors, such as 'people can hardly be able to' (a redundant construction) and 'regarding for a particular disease' (incorrect preposition usage). While these errors are noticeable, they do not impede communication. The majority of your sentences are clear, and punctuation is generally handled well. Increasing the frequency of error-free complex sentences will help improve this score.

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