Cambridge IELTS 12 Academic Writing Test 2

• Task 1: describe the chart/graph/table in your own words.
• Task 2: write an argumentative essay responding to the prompt.
• On submit, AI will score you on all 4 IELTS criteria with feedback.

Cambridge IELTS 12 Academic Writing Test 2 combines a Task 1 map with a Task 2 direct-question essay, giving you sixty pressured minutes to demonstrate both report writing and argument writing. Task 1 asks you to summarise the centre of a small town called Islip as it is now, and plans for its development. Task 2 then turns to a discursive prompt: At the present time, the population of some countries includes a relatively large number of young adults, compared with the number of older people.

With maps, group changes into structures added, structures removed and structures relocated, then describe each group together. Answer the question directly in the introduction and use each body paragraph to develop one main reason or example. Hedge sensibly with 'in many cases' or 'particularly' rather than absolutes — examiners reward measured argumentation.

Spend twenty minutes flat on Task 1 — five planning, twelve writing, three reviewing — and forty on Task 2, with at least five of those at the end for proofreading. Task 2 is worth twice the marks, so do not let an over-long map description steal time from your essay. For band 7, the essay's argumentation matters more than the report's elegance, but a clean overview sentence in Task 1 is non-negotiable.

New to this skill? Read the Writing question types guide for tactics, scoring rules, and frequency analysis across Cambridge 10–20. Or browse all Writing practice tests.

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