Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-10-14

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 6.0)

There is an increase in the number of people who are testing out alternative treatments as compared to going to their usual doctor. I believe this is a sign of a postive development.

Medical treatment consists of procedure which involves drugs and operations which are very hard on the human body. The side effects can lead to long lasting impacts due to the chemicals used in the treatments. Medical treatments can also be expensive as the hospital costs for production of tablets is high. As a result of this, many people leave their treatmenr halfway. Hence there is a need for alternative medicinal treatments.

In India, there exist many alternative medical options like homeopathy and ayurveda in which a person can be cured using natural substances derived from nature.These substance are not processed and have low side effects as compared to usually medical treatments.For example, in a traditional treatment scenario if a person gets cold, they visit the doctor. This doctor recommends them medicines lioe antibiotics. Antibiotics, if taken for a longer term can harm the body more than benefit it. Similarly, there are other side effects that come with it. If such people have access to alternative medicines, they can consume herbs and medicinal plants which don't cause any side effects. Similarly these treatment options are cheaper.

In conclusion, alternative medical treatments can benefit to people as they are lighter on the pocket and cause minimal ro no aide effects. Hence, I completely beleive that this is a sign of a positive development.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

Your position is clear from the opening: you consider the growing use of alternative treatments a positive development, and the conclusion restates this view. You give relevant reasons, including cost and possible side effects, and the India-based examples of homeopathy, Ayurveda, and herbal remedies help address the topic. However, some claims are broad or insufficiently explained. For instance, you suggest natural substances have few side effects and that antibiotics can harm the body, but do not qualify when these risks apply or distinguish between conditions that need medical care and those suitable for self-care. The point about people abandoning treatment because of expense is also introduced but not developed. Explain these ideas more carefully and support them with balanced examples to make the response more complete and convincing.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a clear overall structure: an introduction states your view, two body paragraphs present reasons and examples, and a conclusion summarises your position. The progression from concerns about conventional treatment to alternatives is generally easy to follow. You also use linking expressions such as “As a result,” “Hence,” and “Similarly.” At times, however, these links feel repetitive or mechanical, and the second body paragraph moves between examples and claims without a fully clear sequence. The repeated use of “Similarly” does not always show precisely how the next point relates to the previous one. Group the discussion into distinct points—for example, safety first and affordability second—and use clearer referencing so readers can follow which treatments or risks you mean.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant topic vocabulary, including “alternative treatments,” “side effects,” “antibiotics,” and “medicinal plants,” which allows you to discuss the issue clearly. There are also attempts at more specific expressions, such as “long lasting impacts” and “derived from nature.” However, some word choices and collocations are inaccurate or awkward, including “hospital costs for production of tablets,” “lighter on the pocket,” and “cured using natural substances.” Spelling errors such as “postive,” “treatmenr,” “lioe,” and “beleive” also reduce accuracy. Aim for more precise, natural phrasing and proofread carefully; for example, describe treatment as “costly” rather than referring to tablet production costs, and avoid presenting all alternative remedies as reliably curative.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, including a relative clause in “options … in which a person can be cured” and a conditional structure in “if a person gets cold, they visit the doctor.” Most of the meaning remains understandable, but some grammatical errors occur. For example, “Medical treatment consists of procedure” needs a plural or article, and “These substance are” has a subject–verb agreement and plural-form problem. The sentence beginning “If such people have access…” also shifts from “people” to “they” and then “which,” making the reference less controlled. Punctuation and spacing around sentence boundaries need attention as well. Check agreement, articles, and pronoun references, while continuing to practise varied sentence structures.

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