Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 14 · 2026-08-12

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

The growth of online shopping will one day lead to all shops in towns and cities closing.

Do you agree or disagree?

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

 

Student answer (Band 6.0)

It is widely believed that several shops which are located in the markets are more likely to get close in future because of the increasing demand of online shopping. I believe that digital shopping can replace the entire offline shopping complexes in the future.

On the one hand, as technology has advanced considerably, it significantly contributes to a vast range of online services. In the contemporary era, as the young people are suffering from a hectic and busy lifestyle they have not sufficient time for the offline services. As a result, they are more likely to follow the digital platforms such as amazon, flipkart for purchasing items. These services not only save their valuable time but also contributes to saving money which eventually leads to the overall growth. Apart from this, online services provide those branded items which are not readily available on the local shopping stores. Last but not least, online shopping indirectly influences the environment also. For instance, it has been seen that 40% people are taking advantage of online shopping and this reduces the use of vehicles therefore gradually reducing the level of pollution and traffic congestion on the roads.

Contrastingly, many individuals are still using offline complexes as they believe that such type of services facilitates us to check the quality of the products. Moreover, some people went out for shopping and this helps them to spend some quality time with each other which eventually refreshens their mind. Besides this, if everyone will use online technology, it will foster the use of internet services which can cause inconvenience related to delivery.

In conclusion, although there are some negative consequences of using digital networks, I still believe that these services will replace the entire shopping complexes as the young people are more connected to online purchasing.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response addresses the prompt by taking a clear position that online shopping will eventually replace physical stores. The ideas are relevant, such as the convenience of online shopping and the social aspect of physical stores. However, the development is somewhat uneven. The argument regarding environmental impact is a bit underdeveloped and relies on a questionable statistic (40%), which lacks context. While the position is consistent, the essay would benefit from more nuanced exploration of why physical stores might survive in niche markets or as 'experience centers' to provide a more balanced and sophisticated argument.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The essay is logically organized into clear paragraphs, each with a distinct focus. The use of cohesive devices such as 'On the one hand', 'Contrastingly', and 'In conclusion' helps guide the reader through the argument. However, some transitions are slightly mechanical, and the referencing is occasionally repetitive. For instance, the phrase 'which eventually' is used twice in close proximity, which affects the flow. Paragraphing is used appropriately, and the progression of ideas is generally easy to follow, though the link between the environmental point and the main argument could be strengthened.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, with some attempts at more sophisticated phrasing like 'contemporary era' and 'traffic congestion'. However, there are several instances of awkward word choice and collocation errors, such as 'get close' instead of 'close down', 'offline shopping complexes' (which sounds unnatural), and 'refreshens their mind' (should be 'refreshes'). While the meaning is always clear, the range of vocabulary is somewhat limited, and the errors in collocation prevent the response from reaching a higher band. More precise terminology would improve the overall quality.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The student uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are several grammatical errors, such as 'as the young people are suffering' (unnecessary 'the'), 'they have not sufficient time' (should be 'do not have'), and 'some people went out' (tense inconsistency). Punctuation is generally functional, but there are minor issues with sentence boundaries and article usage throughout. While these errors do not impede communication, they occur frequently enough to prevent the essay from being considered error-free. A greater focus on subject-verb agreement and correct tense usage would be beneficial.

See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.