Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-10-06

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 6.5)

Currently, an increasing number of people with health issues are tyring alternative medicines and treatments rather than going for a checkup with their usual doctor. The consumption of wrong dosage or wrong medicine could result in serious health problems. Hence, I think this is a negative development.

The intake of wrong dosage of medicines can be injurious to health. If a person uses a medicine without a doctor's prescription for a prolonged period of time they might get addicted to it. Furthermore, if a medicine is used continously, the human body may get immune to it and a normal dose would no longer be affective. Moreover, high dosage can also negatively impact the kidneys and other parts of the body as most medicines have steriods in it. In Pakistan, people consume panadol on a regular basis for headaches or body ache without prescription. As a result, incase of a serious injury a panadol might not provide relief from pain as our bodies are used to it.

People trying alternative medicines and treatments are often unaware of their own medical history. Hence, they end up taking a drug or treatment that might flare up another issue that their body has. For example, to get relief from body ache people take high dose of pain killers. The same pain killers can lead to stomach acidity and nausea if the person already had weak stomach. Similarly, if a person uses a medicine for treating a health problem without taking into account that they have diabetes or are lactose intolerant, the medicine may aggravate these issues. Thus, using drugs and treatments with no prior knowledge can cause more harm than good.

In conclusion, I believe that the rising trend of people using alternative medicines and treatments rather than visiting a doctor is a negative development as the intake of high dosage or wrong medicine can cause severe health issues.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.0

The response addresses all parts of the task by presenting a clear position throughout that the trend is a negative development. The ideas are extended and supported, such as discussing how the prolonged use of unprescribed medication leads to addiction, reduced effectiveness, and adverse effects on organs like the kidneys. However, there is a tendency to over-generalize and mix up the concepts of alternative medicines and unprescribed over-the-counter drugs, as seen when mentioning panadol and painkillers, which shifts the focus slightly away from traditional alternative therapies like herbalism or homeopathy. To reach a higher level, the arguments could be more strictly focused on alternative treatments and develop those specific implications more rigorously.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.0

The response demonstrates a clear logical organization and progression throughout. Each paragraph has a distinct central topic, moving smoothly from the introduction and thesis statement to body paragraphs detailing specific health risks, and finally to a concise conclusion. Cohesive devices are used reasonably well, with transition markers such as "Furthermore," "Moreover," and "Thus" helping to guide the reader through the arguments. Paragraphing is used sufficiently and appropriately, as every main point is separated into its own logical block. To achieve an even higher band, the use of referencing could be more varied and seamless, avoiding slightly mechanical transitions.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

The vocabulary used is adequate for the task, providing sufficient range to communicate ideas about health and medicine. There are attempts to use less common vocabulary, such as "prolonged period," "aggravate," and "lactose intolerant." However, there are notable word-form and spelling errors throughout the text, including "tyring" instead of trying, "continously" instead of continuously, "affective" instead of effective, "steriods" instead of steroids, "incase" instead of in case, and "weak stomach" missing a definite article. These lexical errors and occasional inaccuracies in word choice prevent the response from achieving a higher rating, though communication remains clear despite the flaws.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.5

The response displays a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating control over relative clauses and conditional structures, such as in the sentence beginning with "If a person uses a medicine..." There are some grammatical errors and punctuation issues present, including missing articles (e.g., "a weak stomach") and agreement slips, but they rarely impede communication. The control over grammar represents a solid foundation that meets the criteria for a strong performance, showing a good portion of error-free sentences alongside minor slips. To move up further, the writer would need to maintain a higher proportion of error-free complex sentences and eliminate minor structural inaccuracies entirely.

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