Some people consider computers to be more of a hindrance than a help. Others believe that they have greatly increased human potential. How could computers be considered a hindrance?
Sample Response
Many people believe that computer technology has greatly advanced human progressimmensely helped the human race to progress, but others opine that it has more drawbacks than benefits. This essay examines how computers could be deemedhow could computers be deemed an obstruction rather than a blessing. Many people are addicted to computers and the internetaddicted to computer and Internet technology. They have little social or personal lifeno social and personal life as their screen time is excessivescreen time is unbelievably high. Without a computer, many people believe that they cannot work or continue their studiesstudy. This dependency makes them less creative and less activemore inert. For example, some people who work in modern offices become unproductivework in modern offices cannot work when the Internet connection is interrupted. This over-reliance could have catastrophic consequencesbring catastrophic results, especially in sensitive sectors. A simple mistake in an nuclear research centreatomic energy research centre can destroy millions of lives. Moreover, it is undeniable that the overuse of computers poses health riskshas health hazards. One exampleOne of the examples is the radiation from the computer screen, which damages our eyesight and causes headachescause headache. It has been reported that the number of people who wear glasses has increased significantly since the invention of computers. Besides, these devices have negative effectsthis device has negative effects on the way people socialise and interact with each other. With the invention of portable computers, tablets and smartphones, people remain busy with their devices rather than having face-to-face conversations or social interactions. They stay indoors and scarcely take part in outdoor activities. Consequently, people's overall healthoverall health condition is deteriorating and their social relationships are becoming fragiletheir social relationship is becoming fragile. In conclusion, although computer technology has brought many benefits to humanitybenefits for mankind, it has many drawbacks as wellmany negative sides too. People's overreliance on technology mainly createscreate those problems and it is hoped that we will use it to make our life easier, not more complex and perilous.
Why this response received Band 7.0
The essay addresses the requested negative effects directly and develops several relevant strands, especially dependence, disrupted work, health, and reduced social interaction. Its main limitation is uneven support: the nuclear-risk and screen-radiation claims are overstated or weakly substantiated, while minor grammar and collocation errors recur. Prioritise selecting credible examples and grouping each drawback into a clearly separated, fully explained paragraph.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Response
The response directly explains several ways computers can hinder people, with relevant development of dependence, health concerns, and social isolation.
Support the strongest drawbacks with credible, proportionate examples and avoid speculative claims about radiation or catastrophic nuclear consequences.
Coherence and Cohesion
The ideas follow a logical sequence and cohesive markers signal each new drawback, but the single-block body limits paragraph-level clarity.
Create distinct body paragraphs for dependence, health, and social effects, each with one focused explanatory chain.
Lexical Resource
Vocabulary is varied and often precise, including over-reliance, sensitive sectors, face-to-face conversations, and social interactions.
Refine less natural phrases such as continue their study, has health hazards, and negative sides into idiomatic academic wording.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
The essay uses a broad range of structures with generally good control, despite occasional question-word-order and subject-verb agreement errors.
Correct indirect-question order and agreement in phrases such as how computers could be deemed, damages and causes, and overreliance creates.
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IELTS Writing Task 2
Some people consider computers to be more of a hindrance than a help. Others believe that they have greatly increased human potential. How could computers be considered a hindrance?
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.