Some people feel that the legal age at which people can marry should be at least 21. To what extent do you agree or disagree?
Sample Response
It is widely agreed that a happy and stable relationship in marriage is the bedrock of any community, with a greater likelihood of responsible partners, and if children result, harmonious family. Because of this, it is important to support the institution of marriage in every way possible. One important question isOne important question in relation to this is: at what age should couples be allowed to marry? There are a number of reasons for making the minimum marriage ageminimum age for matrimony as highlate as possible. Many would argue that people in their 20s are able to make muchsuch more rational decisions than teenagers can. People in their twentiesOlder people might have seen enough of the world to know that the feelings that they havehold for someone at a particulargiven moment may not last. They will realise that superficial characteristics such assuperficial characteristics like physical beauty and sporting prowess may not be the only qualities that bring happinessmay not be the only ones to bring happiness in a relationship. Older couples are likely to give more consideration to issues such as income and employmentjob prospects, as well as to less obvious, but also to less obvious but important personality traits such as tolerance, kindness or moral strength. However, other people contend that it is unrealistic to make couples wait until their 20s before marrying. They suggest that as soon as young people reach pubertyas soon as the boy and the girl reached puberty they should be allowed to marry. Preventing them from doing soTo prevent they doing so would result in resentment between the generations, frustration and an increase in the number of pregnancies without adequate supportunsupported pregnancies. If married teenagers are given enough supportenough help to support, they can have children when they are young and healthy enough to enjoy raising themhealthy enough to enjoy them. Considering both thesethis sets of arguments, I feel that 21 is probably too old but that 18 should be made the legal minimum at which couples can marry.
Why this response received Band 6.5
The response offers a thoughtful comparison of maturity, practical readiness, and the possible consequences of restricting younger couples, ending with a clear preference for eighteen as the minimum age. Its main limitation is that all ideas are presented in one undivided paragraph, while several grammatical slips weaken polish. Prioritise clear paragraph breaks and accurate clause construction so the well-developed argument is easier to follow.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Response
The response addresses the proposition directly, explores arguments on both sides, and reaches a clear, relevant conclusion.
State the preferred minimum age near the beginning and develop the case for eighteen more explicitly throughout.
Coherence and Cohesion
Ideas progress logically through contrasting positions, but the absence of paragraph breaks makes the structure less visible.
Separate the introduction, each side of the argument, and the conclusion into purposeful paragraphs.
Lexical Resource
Vocabulary is varied and often precise, with effective choices for discussing relationships, maturity, and personal qualities.
Refine a few awkward collocations so sophisticated word choices sound consistently natural.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
A good range of complex structures communicates the argument clearly despite several noticeable errors in form and clause construction.
Proofread subject forms, pronoun structures, and agreement in phrases such as those describing prevention and support.
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IELTS Writing Task 2
Some people feel that the legal age at which people can marry should be at least 21. To what extent do you agree or disagree?
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.