Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Attending a live performance (for example, a play, concert, or sporting event) is more enjoyable than watching the same event on television. Use specific reasons and examples to support your opinion.
Sample Response
The issue of whetherissue whether to attend a live performance or to watchor enjoy watching the same event on TV is a controversial one. However, in my opinion, an intermediate position can be taken. I base my viewsuggestion on the following points. But before I begin I think I need to clarify what kind of live performances I like. I mostly attend concerts and prefer to watch sporting events on TVsee sports events on TV. First of all, watching an event on TV can offerbring many advantages. One can relax and settle in his favourite chair, eating a cake or having a drink. One does not have to spend time driving to the place where an event takes place. Also, onehe does not spend money on a ticket. Moreover, when sitting in front of a TV set, one is sometimes ablesometimes sitting in front of a TV set one is likely to see more interesting parts of a show more clearly through professional camera workwith the help of an operator. Second, the weather is no longer as importantof that importance. He does not care that it is rainy or chilly outside. On the other handFrom the other side, attending a live performance has many advantages too. Firstly, people can enjoy the songs as they are in real timein a real time. Personally, I like to attend a live performance because it givesbecause they give a great deal of positive energymuch positive energy and many beautiful moments. Frankly, watching a show at home does not give me that. One can enjoy loud music, proximity to their favourite starsthe closeness of his favourite stars and sing along to the songsshout the songs he likes. In summary, I prefer to attend live performances for concerts and showsin the case of a concert and show. HoweverHowever, in contrast, I prefer to watch sports events on television at home.
Why this response received Band 6.5
The response presents a clear, nuanced preference by distinguishing concerts from sporting events and supports it with several relevant practical reasons. Its main limitation is that the one-paragraph format and mechanical transitions make the discussion feel list-like, while some expressions are unnatural or grammatically inaccurate. The highest-priority improvement is to organize the comparison into distinct paragraphs and develop one concrete example for each preference.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Response
A clear qualified opinion is maintained, and both viewing preferences are supported with relevant reasons.
Extend the argument with specific examples showing why concerts benefit from live attendance and sports benefit from television coverage.
Coherence and Cohesion
The argument progresses logically from television benefits to live-performance benefits, but paragraphing is absent and linking is mechanical.
Divide the response into an introduction, two focused body paragraphs, and a conclusion, using fewer enumerative transitions.
Lexical Resource
Vocabulary is adequate for discussing entertainment choices, though several expressions are awkward or imprecise.
Use natural collocations such as ‘in real time’, ‘a sense of energy’, and ‘sing along to the songs’.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
The response uses a useful mix of sentence forms with generally clear meaning, despite several article, pronoun, and clause errors.
Check agreement and reference in sentences such as the one shifting from ‘a live performance’ to ‘they’.
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IELTS Writing Task 2
Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Attending a live performance (for example, a play, concert, or sporting event) is more enjoyable than watching the same event on television. Use specific reasons and examples to support your opinion.
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.