Many people think modern communication technology is having some negative effects on social relationships.

Practice this IELTS Writing Task 2 question on IELTSX. Many people think modern communication technology is having some negative effects on social relationships.

Negative effects of modern communication technology on social relationships - IELTS Writing Task 2

You should spend about 40 minutes on this task.

Do you agree or disagree?

Write at least 250 words.

A student's answer to this task, and the feedback on it

Written by an IELTSX user under exam conditions and published unedited and anonymously. Band 6.5 ยท 304 words.

In the contemporary world, social media and technological advancements have undoubtedly become deeply embedded in people's daily lives, even facilitating interaction between immediate family and friends. While it is undeniable that modern communication allows people to stay connected, I mostly agree, as it may also cause unnecessary arguments and substantially distort public perception.

First and foremost, many well-known influencers on social platforms present their opinions on some subjects as unquestionable facts, which particularly influences young individuals' behaviour and expectations. As a matter of fact, public figures can often occasionally set unrealistic standards on relationships by actively sharing their viewpoints and promoting their lifestyles. For instance, videos about "red flags in relationships" from some influencers are often quite popular and ambivalent, which can significantly mislead their audience and influence their decision-making in the future. Therefore, overuse of this type of content can exert a profound influence on people's personal relationships, as it hinders them from identifying their own values and building meaningful connections.

On the other hand, modern communication may enable people to effectively fortify their relationships regardless of their location or circumstances. Since many individuals can relocate in another country to seek more favorable employment prospects, maintaing regular contact with immediate family and friends is crucial to avoid feelings of loneliness and homesick. To illustrate, when people relocate to increase their incomes and provide for their families, they can share important milestones or genuinely support each other in difficult situations through video calls. Consequently, technological advancements may enable individuals to strengthen their relationships and form a sense of belonging.

All in all, although media platforms and certain public figures can unintentionally distort public perception by projecting their beliefs on their audience, other form of communication technology not only allows individuals to strengthen bonds with loved ones but also share important moments over long distances.

Examiner feedback

The essay demonstrates a clear understanding of the prompt with a well-supported position and good paragraph structuring, earning strong scores in Task Response and Coherence. Minor lexical and grammatical inaccuracies, such as spelling errors and incorrect word forms, place the language scores at a Band 6 level, resulting in an overall band score of 6.5.

Task Response - 7

- Addresses all parts of the task with a clear, nuanced position that mostly agrees with the prompt. - Presents relevant main ideas regarding both the negative influences of media and the positive aspects of communication technology. - Supports arguments with appropriate examples, though some points on influencers feel slightly generalized.

Coherence & Cohesion - 7

- Logically organizes information into a clear introduction, two balanced body paragraphs, and a conclusion. - Uses a good range of cohesive devices appropriately (e.g., 'First and foremost', 'On the other hand', 'Consequently'). - Maintains clear central topics within each paragraph with smooth overall progression.

Lexical Resource - 6

- Uses an adequate and functional range of vocabulary with some less common items like 'contemporary world' and 'fortify'. - Makes occasional spelling and word formation errors (e.g., 'maintaing', 'homesick' instead of 'homesickness'). - Demonstrates general control of collocations with minor inaccuracies in word choice.

Grammatical Range & Accuracy - 6

- Employs a mix of simple and complex sentence structures effectively throughout the essay. - Contains some minor grammatical and spelling errors that do not impede communication. - Punctuation and sentence boundaries are generally well-controlled.

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