The writing task in IELTS test is not similar to a school essay writing task. In an essay writing or a creative writing competition, essays are marked based on how creative a writer is and whether the writing task is engaging the reader or not. But, the IELTS writing task is a different ball game.

To gauge an IELTS writing task, an in-depth knowledge of the IELTS correction parameters is necessary. These have been clearly outlined in the IELTS Writing band descriptors available in Cambridge exams, British Council and IDP websites. 

According to the IELTS writing band descriptor, there are four areas based on which the writing tasks are evaluated. They include task response, coherence and cohesion, lexical resource and grammatical range and accuracy.

To score well in task response, candidates need to ensure that the writing task answers the given topic. The ideas presented in the essay should address all parts of the question. In addition, the examples or explanations presented must support the ideas and should be well explained. Lack of focus and over-generalisation can hurt the score. This could be the difference between IELTS Writing Band 7.0 and IELTS Writing Band 8.0.

Coherence and cohesion refer to the progression of the task and how well organised the task is. It checks the usage of referents and cohesive devices. Paragraph division could also affect the score. Writing in bullet points may hurt the score.

Lexical resource, in simple words is usage of vocabulary. Many candidates wrongly assume that they need to use fancy or uncommon words to score higher. Sadly, in this attempt candidates commit errors in word choice and lose marks. The IELTS band descriptor asks candidates to use appropriate words which suit the context. It also insists that the candidates use the right spelling and word form. Also, uncommon word usage is encouraged. Grammatical range and accuracy measure a candidate’s ability to write error free sentences that are not only grammatically right but are also meaningful.

To add to this, sentence variety is appreciated.

To understand these parameters, candidates should write tasks and get them evaluated with certified IELTS trainers.