Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-09-09
IELTS Writing Task 2 question
News stories on TV and in newspapers are very often accompanied by pictures.
Some people say that these pictures are more effective than words.
What is your opinion about this?
Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.
Student answer (Band 6.5)
A number of news stories are accompanied by attractive photos on TV and in a newspapers. Some people believe that images are quite effective and impressive over the words. I partially agree with the given statements, as appealing pictures in the newspapers catch the attention of readers and facilitate them to gain in-depth information about particular news topic easily, whereas word description provide them clear motive behind the news stories.
On the one hand, nowadays, a majority of newspaper authorities present stories with captivating pictures in order to provide them information about specific incidents or events. Sometimes it makes their reading more enjoyable and fun. For instance, news about the earthquake in India in the newspaper accompanied by images for alerting citizens about current happenings. It also provoke readers emotions, if the pictures are sensitive. As a result, a number of mankind will forward their helping hand by donating money, proving food and basic medicines to needy people. Overall, news with eye-catching images easily attract view's and keep them update with the certain important events or natural disasters. However, every time only photos regarding specific news are unable to give them proper details about news stories. Therefore, written description is needed.
On the other hand, words and pictures both are equally effective in the news stories. Hence, newspapers and TV authorities have to put emphasis on written description and captivating photos for betterment of readers or viewers. Also, it will makes them more informative and it helps the higher authorities to convey essential policies to the society quickly. For instance, during covid time, government shared the information regarding vaccines with the local community through displaying alluring pictures along with long notes in the newspaper. Consequently, it played a vital role for encouraging them to take vaccines in order to prevent the chances of corona disease.
In conclusion, a balanced approach would be considerable rather than reliant on word or pictures. As news with attractive images and words facilitate the viewers to get clear concept behind the news stories and seek helping hands from the local community during earthquake, flood or other life-threating conditions.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 6.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 7.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 6.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 6.0 |
| Overall | 6.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5
The response addresses all parts of the prompt, providing a clear position that both images and text are necessary. The ideas are relevant, such as the role of images in emotional engagement and the necessity of text for detailed information. However, the development is somewhat uneven. While the example of the earthquake is good, the explanation of how images 'provoke readers emotions' could be more deeply explored to reach a higher band. The conclusion effectively summarizes the balanced approach, though some arguments, such as the reference to 'mankind' and 'newspapers authorities', are slightly generalized. Overall, the response is well-structured and directly answers the question.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0
The essay is logically organized with a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate the different sides of the argument. Cohesive devices such as 'On the one hand', 'On the other hand', 'For instance', and 'Consequently' are used to link ideas. However, there are some instances where the flow is slightly mechanical or the referencing is a bit awkward, such as 'provide them information' where the antecedent for 'them' is slightly ambiguous. Despite these minor issues, the progression of ideas is clear and easy to follow throughout the text.
Lexical Resource — Band 6.0
The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary for the task. There are attempts to use less common items like 'captivating', 'alluring', and 'facilitate', which add precision to the writing. However, there are several instances of awkward word choice and collocation errors, such as 'gain in-depth information about particular news topic', 'provide them clear motive', and 'attract view's'. The use of 'mankind' is also stylistically inappropriate in this context. While these errors do not impede communication, they prevent the essay from reaching a higher band for lexical resource.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0
The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are several grammatical errors, particularly with articles ('the newspapers', 'the covid time'), subject-verb agreement ('it will makes them'), and pluralization ('provide them clear motive' should be 'motives'). Some sentences are slightly clunky, such as 'a number of mankind will forward their helping hand'. While the meaning is generally clear and the errors do not cause significant difficulty for the reader, the frequency of these minor errors indicates a need for more consistent control over complex structures.
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