During the last twenty years, the assessment of students has undergone a major transformation. Many educational institutions have shifted their focus from traditional examination towards a variety of innovative assessment techniques, as they believe traditional examination results are not often true to student’s ability. To what extent do you agree with the claim that traditional examination results are not true to the student’s ability?
Sample Response
For more than a century, traditional examination to assess students' abilities is in place, but, a more suitable and modern approach has been adopted by many schools, and this is often regarded as a better technique to evaluate a pupil’s learning ability and knowledge. I personally agree with the claim and believe that the modern assessment approachinnovative modern assessment technique is more suitable.
To begin with, the conventional exam system has a major flaw: its inabilitymajor flaw which is its inadequacy to evaluate the actualtrue knowledge of pupils. For instance, in the conventional paper-based exam system, students can memorise answers to a few questions and pass the exam with a highgood grade. Someone with little knowledge of a subject can get a higher grade by memorising answers. By contrast, innovative approachesOn the contrary, innovative approaches like group assignments, unannouncedsudden quizzes, hands-on tests and so on can reflect the student’s actual level of learningactual level of a student’s learning. This is why many educational institutions are replacing the traditional exam system with these assessment techniquesshifting towards these assessment techniques from the traditional exam system.
Moreover, the paper-based exam system allows students to cheat inon the exam and pass it without even studying hard. By contrast, a studentOn the contrary, a student would not be able to pass a hands-on test or an open-book exam in which they needwhere he or she needs to propose a solution to a problem rather than just copywrite answers from books. In my experience,From my experience, I can tell that I had to study more to pass the unannouncedsudden class tests than for my final examsthan my term finals as I had no clue what teachers would assesswhat teachers would assess on these sudden tests. Many schools have already introduced a few innovative assessment techniques because of the limitations they experienced with traditional testsdue to their experience with traditional tests and their limitations. The latest methods are used because they are more suitablein place because they are more suitable.
To conclude, the appropriate assessment methodproper evaluation method for students is important, and every effort should be made to introduceno stone should be unturned to introduce the most effective way of doing it. Something is missing in the conventional exam system, and I believe this is where the modern methods of evaluating fit in.
Why this response received Band 7.0
The response’s strongest feature is its clear agreement with the claim, supported by focused explanations of memorisation, cheating, and alternative assessments that test applied knowledge. Its main limitation is some repetition and overstatement, particularly the assumption that open-book or practical tests prevent weak preparation or dishonesty. The highest priority is to qualify these comparisons and explain more precisely how varied assessments reveal abilities that traditional examinations may miss.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Response
A clear position is maintained and developed through two relevant criticisms of traditional exams, supported by comparisons and a personal example.
Acknowledge that no method eliminates all weaknesses and show specifically which abilities practical, group, or open-book assessments measure better.
Coherence and Cohesion
The response progresses logically through focused paragraphs, though repeated contrasts and a somewhat vague conclusion limit cohesion at the highest level.
Give each body paragraph a distinct evaluative focus and make the conclusion synthesise the two reasons rather than referring generally to ‘something’ missing.
Lexical Resource
Vocabulary is varied and generally precise for education and assessment, with occasional awkward or repetitive expressions.
Use more natural terms such as ‘unannounced quizzes’, ‘measure students’ knowledge’, and ‘modern assessment methods’ while reducing repeated references to systems and techniques.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
A range of complex structures is mostly accurate, although the opening sentence and a few punctuation and tense choices contain noticeable lapses.
Simplify the opening sentence, remove the unnecessary comma after ‘but’, and maintain consistent tense when describing long-established practices.
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IELTS Writing Task 2
During the last twenty years, the assessment of students has undergone a major transformation. Many educational institutions have shifted their focus from traditional examination towards a variety of innovative assessment techniques, as they believe traditional examination results are not often true to student’s ability. To what extent do you agree with the claim that traditional examination results are not true to the student’s ability?
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.