Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-10-19

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 5.5)

New storied in newspapers and on TV are aften accompained by picture is because nobody believes just spoken words. people do like to see the evidence to be certain the new is real. The world where picture and videos are doctored easily. When new channel or newspapers add the video or picture then we are more certain that its true since they are liable to put any picture with full verification wheter its true or not. They have the responsibility towards the common people to give them the precise information. I believe its great that by showing pictures they do give some authenticity to the news they are sharing but as well there is very thin line in showing the truth and showing the whole truth. As sometimes pictures also can get deceiving when not correctly context. In my opinion picture and words both matters the most. if the channel dont give right information with right image then the common people will be misinterpreted , which can also result to chaos . Like we see in the current time. If news dont educate the common people in correct manner then you will never know when that country becoms hostile just becasue some people saw thing on new which was half truth and started wagin fights under the name of that news. Example i post a picture in news of someone slapping someother person. if i dont put the correct context then the news can go in any direction. As truth for instance is the man slapped because the other person was trying to rob him.If the news channel just post the picture of man slapping and leaving context two people fought and the goverment is not working on it and stuff then this creates chaos for something where its not needed at all.

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response6.5
Coherence and Cohesion4.5
Lexical Resource5.5
Grammatical Range and Accuracy5.0
Overall5.5

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

Your position is clear: you value pictures as evidence, but argue that pictures and words must be used together and properly contextualised. The example of a photograph showing a man slapping someone, without explaining that he was stopping a robbery, is relevant and helps illustrate how an image can mislead. You also address the risk of news causing public confusion or conflict. However, the opening claim that people do not believe spoken words is broad and not fully supported, and the point about news organisations verifying images is asserted rather than explained. To develop the response further, compare more directly when pictures are more effective and when words provide essential detail, then support each point with a specific example. The main parts of the question are addressed, but some ideas are less fully developed than others.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.5

The response has a discernible line of thought: pictures can lend credibility, but without context they may mislead, so words are also necessary. The example about the slap follows from this argument and gives the reader a concrete case. However, the writing is presented as one long paragraph, so the shift from the general claim to the risks and then to the example is not clearly signposted. Several ideas run together, especially the final explanation, and connectors such as “but as well” and “As sometimes” do not establish the relationships clearly. Pronouns and references such as “they” and “this” can also leave the reader unsure what is meant. Use separate paragraphs for your position, supporting reasons and example, and make each sentence connect explicitly to the previous point.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You attempt vocabulary relevant to the topic, including “authenticity,” “verification,” “context,” and “misinterpreted,” and these choices help communicate your concern about misleading news. There is some range beyond basic words, but inaccurate spelling and word choice are noticeable and sometimes make the reader pause: “new storied,” “aften,” “accompained,” “wheter,” and “wagin” appear in place of intended forms. Some expressions are also imprecise or unnatural, such as “the news is real,” “showing the whole truth,” and “leaving context.” Aim for accurate, natural collocations and check spelling carefully. For example, “provide evidence,” “verify an image,” and “present the full context” would express your ideas more precisely and suit an IELTS discussion.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentence forms, including a conditional example beginning “If I post a picture…” and a reason introduced by “since.” This shows an effort to explain relationships between ideas. However, errors in sentence boundaries, agreement, articles and verb forms are frequent enough to make parts difficult to follow. For instance, “picture is because” lacks a clear grammatical structure, “picture and words both matters” has a subject–verb agreement error, and “If news dont educate” needs a correctly formed subject and verb. The final example also becomes a run-on sentence, with several clauses joined without clear punctuation. Practise building complete sentences, checking singular and plural subjects, and dividing long explanations into shorter sentences with accurate punctuation.

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