What Does Task Response Mean in IELTS Writing?

Let me walk you through it so that you fully understand and will get your marks.

Which answer do you think is best?

1.  I think it’s a great idea to clean up the environment. People should care about the environment because we all live in the world, and we need clean, water, food and air.
2.  The cost of cleaning up the environment is very high, but we should all do it.
3. The cost of cleaning up the environment can be shared by all sectors of society, and all people benefit. We will all get clean air and water, so the benefits do outweigh the expenses.

Think of Task Response this way.

Generally, a mother is going to be unhappy.

IELTS examiners are the same as your mother.

They want you to do what they expect.

If you clean your room to perfection, mom’s going to be happy.

You didn’t just pick up your laundry, but you organised your desk, made your bed and vacuumed.

Now, that’s a happy mom!

So, I’m going to show you what your examiner really wants you to do.

For example:

In the question above, you are asked “does A outweigh B?”

It means, “should we spend money to clean up the environment?”

It means, “if you spend that money, would you feel like you wasted it, or not?”

In that question, they are asking you if one ‘outweighs’ the other, so you need to directly say that ‘Yes the benifits outweigh the cost” or “No, the benefits do not outweigh the cost”.

In high-level academics, you don’t say it so directly, but for band 6, when you say it directly, it’s easy for the examiner to know that you understood the question. That’s where your marks come.

If you don’t do that, you aren’t answering the question, and your TR mark will be below 6.

Do it, and you have a good shot at 6+ for TR.

Clear?

That’s the first of three things you need. Let’s try it and make sure you can do it.

Question:

Some people think governments should invest more in public transport, while others believe building more roads is a better solution to traffic problems.
Discuss both views and give your own opinion.

Let’s move on to the second part of TR.

Which answer will make your mom happy?

1. I wanted to.
2. There was a new movie I wanted to see.
3. It’s Sam’s birthday.
4. I do have homework, but it’s not due for two more days.
5. I do have homework, but it’s not due for two more days, and I’ve done most of it already. Also, the teacher said it’s not so important.

The fifth right?

Same with ielts examiners. The better reasons you give and the more clearly you make them, the higher your TR.

This, in IELTS is called ‘present, extend and support.’ What’s the reason you did/didn’t do it, think something is good/bad / agree/disagree, explain why it makes sense (most is done), and then support it with evidence (the teacher).

You have to do all three.

You can, and will, so don’t worry!

Let’s bring these two TR skills together: answer the question and ‘present, extend and support’.

How many paragraphs should you write?

You CAN write three bodies, but they will be less deep, and your mark will likely be lower.

Two paragraphs gives you enough words to really explain your reason clearly.

How did you respond to this question?

Some people think governments should invest more in public transport, while others believe building more roads is a better solution to traffic problems.
Discuss both views and give your own opinion.

Did you discuss BOTH sides and yours?

If you did, that’s great!

Can you ‘present extend and support’ a reason for your opinion?

(if you do the full essay, we can fully assess your skills, just click on this link)

Paragraph example:

Increased investment in public transport can be an effective way to reduce traffic congestion in urban areas. Reliable and affordable alternatives to private cars, systems such as underground railways and bus networks can reduce the number of vehicles on the road. This is important during peak hours. This not only shortens travel times but also improves the overall efficiency of city transport systems. A single train or bus can replace dozens of individual cars. We can see this in effect in cities like Dubai and in Singapore. As a result, public transport solves the core traffic problem of congestion.

Here’s the third part of TR.

Is your conclusion clear?

Notice at the end of the body paragraph above, we have a result: “the problem is solved, and the writer say so.

You will add this to the end of your body paragraphs.

For your mom, you would say “So, you can see that it’s not important to do this homework because it has no relation to my classes.”

Bonus:

notice that the sentences and ideas are clear and simple? This increases your mark to 6. (why? If you make long sentences with many errors and the examiner can’t understand you, that’s a 5. Let’s get to 6 and then I’ll show you how to turn it into a 7.)

The essential difference between 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9 is the clarity and depth of your argument, just like we saw in the homework example.

In TR, you don’t just say the reason “I was too busy to do homework.”, you detail why the reason you didn’t do the homework makes sense. (or detail your reason for agreeing/disagreeing.)

Here’s your next question.

Some people believe that universities should focus on providing academic knowledge, while others think they should prepare students for the workplace.

Here’s your checklist

1. Did I respond/talk about everything the question asked me to.
2. Did I state the opinion clearly?
3. Did I present a good reason, extend/explain it and support it?
4. is there a clear result?

Get deeper vocabulary for IELTS writing here.

For more IELTS Band 6 improvement:

To go deeper and practice more TR, keep scrolling down.

A typical Band 5 Task Response problem

Question (shortened):
Some people think governments should spend more money on public transport. Do you agree or disagree?

Band 5 behaviour:

• talks about traffic
• talks about pollution
• talks about cars
• talks about cities
• talks about health

All related.
But not controlled.

The examiner thinks:

“What is this student actually arguing?”

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The one move that fixes Task Response

Here is the single most important move:

Decide one clear answer, and check every paragraph against it.

That’s it.

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Try this now

Take the question again.

Write ONE sentence:

I agree / disagree that governments should spend more money on public transport because ______ and ______.

That sentence is:

• your decision
• your direction
• your control

Now ask yourself:

• Does paragraph 1 explain reason 1?
• Does paragraph 2 explain reason 2?

If not — it does not belong.

That is Task Response.

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Why this immediately raises your score

When you do this:

• the examiner can see your position clearly
• your ideas feel organised
• your writing feels intentional
• your essay feels finished, not messy

You haven’t improved your English.
You’ve improved your control.

That’s why Task Response is a band descriptor.

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A small example (not perfect — just clearer)

Before (weak Task Response):

Public transport is important in cities. There are many cars and pollution is a problem. People need to travel for work and education, and traffic causes stress.

After (better Task Response):

I agree that governments should spend more money on public transport because it reduces traffic congestion and makes daily travel more reliable. When transport systems are efficient, fewer people rely on private cars, which directly addresses congestion problems in cities.

Same level of English.
Clearer direction.

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Now try again (this is where learning happens)

Take one paragraph from your last essay.

Ask:

• What was I trying to prove here?
• Is it directly answering my decision sentence?

If the answer is unclear:

• rewrite just the first sentence
• make it clearly support your position

You don’t need to rewrite the whole essay.

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Where this leads (important)

When you control Task Response:

• your essays stop drifting
• examiners trust you more
• Band 6 becomes realistic
• Band 7 becomes possible later

This is not about being clever.
It’s about being deliberate.

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One thing to remember

Task Response is not about having good ideas.
It’s about choosing which ideas belong.

That’s the skill you are building here.