Many people believe that modern music can have a negative impact on the young. Others believe the effect of modern music is positive. Discuss both these views and give your opinion.

Sample Response

1

Music has changed dramatically over the years and new types of music are constantly appearing. Many people feel that current popular genresstyles, such as rap, are just noise and cannot be considered real music, unlike older styles, such as rock and jazz. Firstly, many people, especially those from older generations, feel that modern types of music can be more harmful than beneficialpositive. They argue thatThey will say modern music is too simplistic and song lyrics may be harmfulthe song lyrics are potentially dangerous. They feel that rap and hip-hop often address disturbing issuesdeal with dangerous issues such as gang violence or express antisocial views. A common concern isIt is a common opinion that this can be harmful to young peopledamaging for young people who listen to these songs. On the other hand, it is important that people are able to listen to the music they preferthe types of music that they prefer; you cannot control people’s tastes or opinions. For young people especially, popular music is an important aspect of identity, sharing an interest in music with their peers brings a sense of stability and belonging. These young people would argue that the lyrics to these songs reflect modern realityreflect the modern reality and it is an important way of expressing their experiences. In conclusion, people will always prefer a certain type of music. People will always be unsure of new things that they may not understandnew things, which they may not understand, and this can be the case with music. However, we cannot stop change and we should not try to, instead, we should encourage new styles of music as all music adds to the wealth of our culture.

Overall assessment

Why this response received Band 7.0

The response discusses both perspectives clearly and reaches a definite, relevant opinion, while its vocabulary and sentence structures communicate the ideas with considerable flexibility. The main limitation is presentation: the entire argument forms one block, and a few comma splices weaken control. The highest-priority improvement is to organise the negative view, positive view, and opinion into separate paragraphs with cleaner sentence boundaries.

Band score breakdown

IELTS Writing Criteria Scores

TR

Task Response

7.0
Scoring rule

Both views are addressed with relevant explanations, and the conclusion gives a clear opinion in favour of accepting and encouraging new musical styles.

Next step

Develop the positive impact more concretely by showing how identity, belonging, or self-expression benefits young listeners in practice.

CC

Coherence and Cohesion

6.5
Scoring rule

The discussion follows a clear sequence from the negative view to the positive view and conclusion, but the lack of paragraph breaks reduces structural clarity.

Next step

Give each viewpoint its own body paragraph and keep the final opinion in a distinct conclusion to make the progression immediately visible.

LR

Lexical Resource

7.0
Scoring rule

The response uses a sufficiently varied and topic-appropriate vocabulary to discuss musical genres, social identity, harmful content, and cultural value.

Next step

Reduce repetition of broad words such as “people” and “music” by using precise references to listeners, genres, lyrics, and cultural expression.

GRA

Grammatical Range and Accuracy

7.0
Scoring rule

The response demonstrates a good range of complex forms, and most sentences are accurate despite several punctuation and sentence-boundary lapses.

Next step

Correct comma splices by separating independent clauses or linking them with suitable conjunctions, especially in the discussion of identity and the conclusion.

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IELTS Writing Task 2

Many people believe that modern music can have a negative impact on the young. Others believe the effect of modern music is positive. Discuss both these views and give your opinion.

Your response

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