Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-09-27

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Today more and more tourists are visiting places where conditions are difficult, such as the Sahara desert or the Antarctic.

What are the benefits and disadvantages for tourists who visit such places?

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

 

Student answer (Band 6.0)

Now a days travellers are opting to visit places where conditions are much more difficult such a Antarctic or the Sahara desert.

In the past such places had no tourist appeal because of harsh weather conditions and almost no living situation. Some of these places don't even have the basic everyday necessity to survive such as, water or electricity. Climate is either too hot or too cold to survive. Even then very few people use to challenge themselves to visit such places, but halfway through they would come back due extreme conditions. We have heard quite alot that some traveller went to Antartica but never came back.

Since then alot has changed in terms of technology and resources. Modern travellers are packed with almost everything they need in a backpack. The amount of supplies they have don't run out quicky. There are methods to dehydrate your food so that you can keep more food occupying lesser space. Science has invented small capsules that will keep you hydrated if you run out of water. Similarly there are alot of new gadgets that can help a person survive in these harsh places. Thanks to the internet and GPS you can find a person much quicker than you used to before. Recently I came across this traveller who went to these mountains with his friends, but he got lost on the way. Rescuers were only able to locate him earlier than a month because he had installed a location tracker chip inside his tooth. When a news channel interviewed him afterwards asking how did he manage to live there, he told them he had sufficient dehydrated fruits to survive on. He had the means to put up fire as well.

As much as you like to visit such places, it is still not completely safe. Most dangerous threat to travellers in these areas is the wildlife. No matter how much prepared you think you are, when you see a wild bear suddenly in the mountains or a cheetah, you don't know how to keep yourself safe. Most of the death among modern day travellers is because of these predators.

While it is good to visit places where tourism rate is low, you should always weigh the pros and cons before deciding to challenge yourself. There is nothing more important than life.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

The response addresses all parts of the prompt by discussing both the benefits and disadvantages of visiting extreme environments such as the Sahara desert or Antarctica. The introduction sets the context, the body paragraphs explore technological advancements that facilitate such trips, and the conclusion weighs the pros and cons. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited and relies on anecdotal or generalized examples, such as the story of the friend who got lost with a tracking chip in his tooth. While the position is clear throughout, the ideas could be extended further with more robust examples to reach a higher band. Overall, it satisfies the requirements for a Band 6.0.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The essay has a recognizable overall structure with an introduction, body paragraphs, and a concluding remark. Paragraphing is used, though the transition between ideas can be abrupt. Cohesive devices are sometimes mechanical or overused, such as 'Since then alot has changed' and 'As much as you like to visit'. Referencing is generally clear, but there are some minor disruptions in logical progression, particularly in the shift from survival technology to the anecdote about the tooth chip. Paragraph indentation and formatting could also be more distinct. These features place the response firmly at a Band 6.0.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, attempting some less common words and phrases such as 'harsh weather conditions', 'everyday necessity', and 'dehydrate your food'. However, there are noticeable spelling and word choice errors throughout the text, including 'Now a days' instead of 'Nowadays', 'alot' instead of 'a lot', 'quicky' instead of 'quickly', and 'due extreme' instead of 'due to extreme'. These errors do not impede communication, but they restrict the lexical score to a Band 5.5.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, utilizing relative clauses and conditional structures. However, grammatical errors are frequent throughout the response, such as missing prepositions ('due extreme conditions'), incorrect verb forms ('very few people use to challenge'), and run-on structures. Punctuation is also occasionally faulty. While the meaning remains mostly clear to the reader, the frequency of errors prevents the text from achieving a higher band, making Band 5.5 the most accurate descriptor.

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