Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-11-04

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)

Over the past few decades, the number of people with health issues who prefer to choose new drugs and treatments to their hospital visit has been increasing. In my opinion, this is a negative development beause I believe no matter how advanced the new drugs and treatments has become, these type of measures can never replace doctors' checkup and hospital visits.

Firstly, it is important for people with health problems to have regular hospital checkups and a doctor who has all their medical history as it guarantees their health condition is constanly recorded and monitored. Additionally, their usual doctors can make adjustments in their patents treatments according to the reactions and outcomes. For example, if the patient reacts negatively to one specific treatment, the doctor can suggest more suitable and alternative drugs, which may result in positive outcomes.

Moreover, there is usually a risk associated with trying alternative drugs and treatments. If the side effect is not visible immidately, the patients may suffer even more later on. It is very common among people to believe in advertisements and to be interested in new medicines and treatments. However, these types of drugs are usually in the interest of companies which seek profit, making it wise to question whether the aim of these drugs is truly for people's health or purely monetary.

In conclusion, I think while the patients' curiosity of alternative treatments will always be there, it is necessary to consult with their reguar doctors. I believe people with health problems should be under the constant supervision of medical professional instead of trying other methods.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

Your position is clear from the introduction: you regard replacing a usual doctor with alternative treatments as negative, and the conclusion reinforces the need for medical supervision. Both body paragraphs give relevant reasons, including the value of a doctor knowing a patient’s history and the risks of side effects and profit-driven advertising. The example of a doctor changing treatment after a negative reaction helps support your first point. However, the discussion of commercial motives is asserted rather than illustrated, and the risks of alternative treatments could be explained more precisely. The response addresses the task well overall, but some ideas are less fully developed than others; a specific example and clearer explanation of how harm might occur would strengthen the argument.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The essay has a clear overall structure: an introduction states your view, two body paragraphs present separate reasons, and the conclusion restates your position. Sequencing expressions such as “Firstly,” “Additionally,” and “Moreover” make the progression easy to follow. Some links, however, feel mechanical, and the relationship between ideas is not always fully explicit. For instance, the move from side effects to people believing advertisements would benefit from a sentence explaining how advertising encourages people to choose treatments without medical advice. References such as “these types of drugs” are also broad, since the preceding discussion includes both drugs and treatments. To improve, use a wider range of natural transitions and make links between claims and examples more explicit.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of topic vocabulary, including “medical history,” “side effect,” “alternative drugs,” “monitored,” and “supervision.” These choices make your main points clear, and phrases such as “profit” and “monetary” help express your concern about commercial motives. There are, however, some inaccurate or unnatural collocations and spelling errors. For example, “prefer to choose new drugs and treatments to their hospital visit” is not a natural way to describe the contrast, while “patents treatments” appears to mean “patients’ treatments.” “Regular doctors” and “new medicines” are also less precise than the context allows. Aim for more natural combinations such as “seek alternative treatment instead of consulting their doctor” and check spelling carefully; this would make your vocabulary more precise and controlled.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and complex structures, including a conditional example (“if the patient reacts negatively…”) and a concession in the conclusion (“while… will always be there”). Most sentences communicate your meaning, but some grammatical errors remain. In the introduction, “these type of measures” needs plural agreement, and “treatments has become” should use a plural verb. The sentence beginning “it is important for people… to have regular hospital checkups and a doctor…” also has an awkward structure because the two items do not fit smoothly together. There are further issues with possessives and articles, as in “the patients treatments” and “a medical professional.” Review agreement, possessive forms, and sentence construction while retaining your attempts at complex sentences.

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