IELTS Writing Task 2 Essay Structure: Plan a Clear Band 7 Response

IELTS Writing Task 2 asks for an essay of at least 250 words, and IELTS recommends spending about 40 minutes on it. Task 2 contributes twice as much as Task 1 to the Writing score, so a polished Task 1 cannot compensate for an essay that only partly answers the prompt.

The four marking criteria are Task Response, Coherence and Cohesion, Lexical Resource, and Grammatical Range and Accuracy. They are equally weighted within the task. The official Band 7 descriptor expects the main parts of the prompt to be addressed, a clear and developed position, and main ideas that are extended and supported. A four-paragraph layout is useful only when it helps you produce those features.

For many prompts, a clear default is an introduction, two body paragraphs and a conclusion. The introduction should paraphrase the specific issue and state your answer. Each body paragraph should carry one main claim, explain it and support it with a relevant example or consequence. The conclusion should restate the position without opening a new argument.

The question still controls the structure. A prompt that asks two direct questions needs both answers. A discuss-both-views prompt needs a fair account of both views as well as your own position. If your memorised template forces one part of the task into a single sentence, the layout is working against Task Response.

Read the instruction words before the topic words. ‘To what extent do you agree?’ demands a clear degree of agreement. ‘Discuss both views and give your opinion’ has three jobs. Write a one-sentence answer to the exact instruction, then choose the two strongest reasons you can explain in English under time pressure.

For each reason, note one piece of support: an example, a cause-and-effect chain, a contrast or a practical consequence. This small plan prevents the common mid-essay problem of discovering that two paragraphs repeat the same point. It also gives you a test for relevance: if a sentence does not develop the planned claim, it probably does not belong in the paragraph.

A body paragraph needs progression, not a fixed number of sentences. State the point, explain why it is true or important, then support it. The example should prove the claim rather than merely mention the topic. One well-developed idea is safer than three claims that receive no explanation.

Cohesion comes from the relationship between sentences. Pronouns, repeated key terms and clear cause-and-effect language can connect ideas more naturally than beginning every sentence with ‘Furthermore’ or ‘Moreover’. Vocabulary is assessed for accuracy and appropriacy as well as range, so a familiar precise word is better than an unusual synonym used incorrectly.

A workable practice split is five minutes to analyse and plan, about 30 minutes to write, and five minutes to check. The exact split can change with experience, but proofreading needs protected time. Check first for errors that affect meaning: missing words, unclear references, subject–verb agreement, sentence boundaries and an inconsistent position.

After practice, mark the essay against all four official criteria rather than giving it one vague score. Highlight the exact sentence that states your position, the support for each main idea, repeated vocabulary and grammar errors. Your next exercise should come from that evidence: rewrite one weak paragraph, correct one recurring grammar pattern or plan three prompts without writing full essays.