Some people believe that visitors to other countries should follow local customs and behaviour. Others disagree and think that the host country should welcome cultural differences. Discuss both these views and give your own opinion.
Sample Response
It is always debatable whether visitors should follow local customs and behaviour or the host country should accommodate cultural differencesthe country should be accustomed to cultural differences. At first, I would like to discuss the need to follow local customsdiscuss following local customs and behaviour. As a human being, we have consciousness which helps us to decide what is right or wrong that we apply in every sphere of our life. But not everybody may exercise good judgmenteverybody may not apply consciousness or may not have the same capacity to exercise itsame level of consciousness to apply. If one does not follow local customs, they may not be warmly receivedhe/she may not be taken warmly by people inof that country. For this reasonDue to this reason, I believe that all visitors to other countrieseverybody who visits other countries should follow local customs and behaviour. BesidesBeside this, local customs and behaviour are mostly shapedregulated by the religion of the country a matter to which many people are sensitivewhich is very sensitive to most people. That is why I agree with the view of following local customs and behaviour. OnIn the other hand, there are many reasons to agree with the second view that the host country should welcome cultural differences. It is universally true that civilisationthe civilisation has evolved since the beginning of mankindis evolving from the beginning of mankind and the main reason behind this is that people have travelled from one place to anotherpeople are travelling from one place to another to explore the world, bringing new culturesworld which brings new cultures to new places. If one fails to welcome cultural differences, he/she will not be able to adapt to other countries' culturescope with cultures of other countries. This will affectimpact the economy in terms of tourism and modernization as well as evolutionevaluation of civilisation. A good example of welcoming cultural differences is Malaysia. People of western countries are travelling to Malaysia and most of them are not used to follow local customs and being a Muslim country, Malaysia also providing freedom to visitors until laws are broken. Malaysia has become an example for other countries to welcome cultural differences. That is why cultural differences should always be welcomed until it hurts your philosophy or religion.
Why this response received Band 5.5
The response engages with both positions and gives relevant reasons involving social acceptance, religious sensitivity, cultural development, tourism, and Malaysia. Its main limitation is an unclear overall judgement: it first strongly supports conformity and later endorses cultural differences within vaguely defined limits, without a conclusion that reconciles these views. The highest priority is to state a balanced position explicitly and organise each view in a separate paragraph with a final synthesis.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Response
Both views receive relevant discussion and an example, but the writer's final opinion is not clearly reconciled and several claims remain broad or vague.
Argue explicitly that visitors should respect essential laws and customs while hosts tolerate harmless differences, then define those limits clearly.
Coherence and Cohesion
The discussion moves from following customs to accepting differences, but the absence of paragraphing and a concluding synthesis weakens progression and cohesion.
Use an introduction, one paragraph for each view, and a conclusion that combines the two positions into one clear judgement.
Lexical Resource
The vocabulary covers culture, religion, tourism, and social change, but frequent repetition and inaccurate choices such as 'taken warmly' reduce precision.
Use natural expressions such as 'welcomed by local people', 'respect local customs', 'cultural exchange', and 'within legal limits'.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
The response attempts complex structures, but frequent errors in articles, verb forms, agreement, prepositions, and clause construction weaken accuracy.
Rewrite long sentences around one clear main clause, then check auxiliary verbs, articles, and prepositions before adding supporting clauses.
Write this task while it is fresh
Try the same task now. It helps you remember the feedback and write better next time.
IELTS Writing Task 2
Some people believe that visitors to other countries should follow local customs and behaviour. Others disagree and think that the host country should welcome cultural differences. Discuss both these views and give your own opinion.
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.