Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-10-23

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)

In the current era of mass media and influence, many people with health issues are experimenting alternative medications and treatments instead of getting check up from their usual doctor. In my opinion, it is a negative development because people need professional care and treatment for serious health issues, and that there maybe unknown consequences or sideffects of medicines taken without consultation from a doctor.

The major negative effect of people trying alternative medicines and treatments is that they need a professional insight on serious health issues. If a person believes that the problem can be treated by taking different medicines on their own, unaware of the seriousness of that issue, then they may face serious consequences in the future. For example, if a person suffering from serious health problems like migrane believes that it can be treated by medicines and does not consult a doctor. They may face a bigger problem in longer period of time.

Another drawback is that there can be side effects of medicines or treatments taken without permission of doctor. Many people consume expired or invalid tablets at home and then expect their condition to get better, but it only gets worse. A visit to their usual doctor can get them access to new medicines and help them recover. For example, if a person takes an expired tablet for fever and then starts having other health issues such as vomitting, headache or feeling dizzy. That is why visiting a doctor would be more preferable to cure a disease more effectively.

In conclusion, I believe that it is better for people to consult a professional then trying medicines and treatments themselves, which can cause side effects and increase the urgency of existing health problems.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

Your position is clear from the introduction: you consider the trend negative because people need professional care and may face unknown consequences from self-treatment. Both body paragraphs give relevant reasons, and the examples of an untreated migraine and taking an expired fever tablet help illustrate your concerns. This addresses the task and provides a coherent basis for your view. However, the examples are hypothetical and the discussion sometimes asserts outcomes rather than explaining them—for instance, the migraine example does not specify how a doctor’s diagnosis could prevent the problem from worsening. The point about expired tablets also focuses on unsafe medication rather than alternative treatments generally. Develop the reasoning more precisely and connect each example directly to the question.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The response has a clear overall structure: an introduction states your view, two body paragraphs present separate reasons, and the conclusion restates your position. Sequencing phrases such as “The major negative effect,” “Another drawback,” and “In conclusion” make the progression easy to follow. The examples are placed in the relevant paragraphs, supporting the organisation. At times, however, the linking is somewhat mechanical, and some references are unclear. In “If a person… believes… They may face,” the pronoun shifts from singular to plural, making the reference less smooth. The final sentence of the second body paragraph also moves quickly from the example back to the general claim. Use more varied transitions and make links between claims, examples, and consequences explicit.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use enough topic-related vocabulary to communicate your position, including “professional care,” “side effects,” “expired,” and “serious health problems.” Some phrases show an attempt to express more specific ideas, such as “unknown consequences” and “recover.” However, several noticeable word-choice, spelling, and collocation problems reduce precision: “experimenting alternative medications” needs a suitable preposition, “getting check up” is not idiomatic, and “invalid tablets” does not clearly express the intended meaning. “Migrane,” “sideffects,” and “vomitting” are also misspelled. Build accuracy with common health-related collocations and check spelling; more precise vocabulary would make your argument clearer and more natural.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mix of simple and complex sentences, including conditional structures such as “If a person believes… then they may face…” and a relative clause in “medicines or treatments taken without permission of doctor.” The main ideas remain understandable, but some grammatical errors recur. For example, “people… are experimenting” is missing a required preposition, while “there maybe unknown consequences” has an incorrect verb form. Articles and number are also inconsistent in “getting check up” and “permission of doctor.” In the migraine example, “a person” is followed by “They,” creating an agreement and reference mismatch. Practise accurate article use, verb forms, and consistent pronouns, while retaining your attempts at longer sentence structures.

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