Band 4.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 4.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-10-09

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 4.5)

to commence with this is most debate able topic today a growing number of people with health problem are trying alternative medicines and treatments instead of visiting their usual doctor. in few aspects this condition work very well but according to my prospective this spread more negative development because some individuals ate alternative medicine in some problem they face very much difficulties and health problems.

first and for most, they have both positive and negative effect however, they have more darker side . the major disadvantage of this people take alternative medicines and treatment without doctor prescription they face lot's of problem for instance a person inhale a paracetamol tablet few times in fever but that is wrong because some times people face from big problem like malaria sometime people faced died from these reason.

the paradoxical side, the another negative impact on health because they can take high drugs dose they also impact their altough if person can connect with doctor . dr. give some medicine with small mg drugs and also told about timings of drugs which was good for our health we can also follow some diet plan these things helps to recover fastly. for example if we connect with dr. we get great treatment .

to conclude, a growing number of people with health problems are trying alternatives medicines and treatments which effect our health and sometimes suffers from died according to my opinion we always prefer doctor for medicines and treatment which was helpful for our health

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response4.5
Coherence and Cohesion4.5
Lexical Resource4.5
Grammatical Range and Accuracy4.5
Overall4.5

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.5

You give a clear overall view that relying on alternative treatments instead of seeing a doctor is negative, and you try to support it with examples about incorrect self-medication and the benefits of professional advice. However, the discussion is only partially developed: the example of taking paracetamol does not clearly explain the risk, and the reference to malaria and people dying is difficult to follow. The positive side is mentioned but not explored, despite the opening saying there are benefits. The response also contains 230 words, so it is 20 words below the required minimum; the 22 words copied from the prompt are not counted. Develop each reason with a clear explanation and a relevant example.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.5

The response has a basic paragraph structure: an introduction, two body paragraphs and a conclusion, and the reader can identify your main position. Some linking phrases, such as “first and for most” and “to conclude,” signal stages of the argument. However, progression within paragraphs is often unclear, and ideas are joined in ways that do not show their relationship. For example, the discussion moves from taking paracetamol to malaria and death without explaining the connection. Phrases such as “the paradoxical side” and “the another negative impact” also make the sequence difficult to follow. Organise each paragraph around one main point, then explain it and give a directly relevant example; use referencing and connectors more accurately.

Lexical Resource: Band 4.5

You attempt vocabulary relevant to the topic, including “alternative medicines,” “prescription,” “dose,” and “diet plan,” and you communicate a generally negative view. However, the range is basic and several inaccurate or unnatural choices make meaning difficult to understand. Examples include “most debate able topic,” “more darker side,” “connect with doctor,” and “suffers from died.” Some words are repeated, particularly “problem,” “health,” and “medicine,” while spelling and word forms such as “prospective” for “perspective” reduce clarity. Build a more precise set of expressions for discussing treatment and risk, and check collocations and word forms. For instance, use “seek medical advice” rather than “connect with doctor,” and “serious complications” rather than the unclear “big problem.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 4.5

You attempt some longer sentences and use basic structures to state your opinion and give examples. However, grammatical errors are frequent and sometimes distort the intended meaning. For example, “a growing number of people with health problem are” has a number-agreement error, while “they have both positive and negative effect” has an agreement and article problem. Sentence boundaries and punctuation are also unreliable: the opening paragraph contains several ideas joined without clear sentence breaks, and “the another negative impact on health because they can take high drugs dose” is not a complete, well-formed sentence. Practise accurate simple sentences first, then combine them using clauses such as “because” and “although.” Check articles, plurals, verb forms and punctuation when editing.

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