5 Task 2 mistakes that cost you a band (and how to fix each one)
After grading more Task 2 essays than we can count, the same five problems show up over and over. Each one cuts roughly half a band off the overall score. Here they are, ranked by frequency, with the smallest possible fix.
1. Drifting from your thesis
The pattern: You take a clear position in your introduction ("This essay agrees that …"). Body paragraph 1 makes a solid case for that position. Body paragraph 2 introduces a tangentially-related idea and slides into a balanced "on the other hand" tone even though you said you agreed. Conclusion restates a slightly hedged version of your original thesis.
The cost: TR drops from 7 to 6.
The fix: Before each body paragraph, write its topic sentence in five words. Read your topic sentence and ask: does this directly support my thesis? If yes, keep going. If no, rewrite the topic sentence until it does.
2. Over-using memorised transitions
The pattern: Every paragraph starts with "Firstly", "Secondly", "In addition". Every example starts with "For instance". Every conclusion starts with "In conclusion".
The cost: CC drops from 7 to 6 because the descriptor explicitly mentions "appropriate" use — mechanically signalling order is not the same as showing logical structure.
The fix: Replace order-signalling transitions with relationship-signalling phrases:
| Don't | Do |
|---|---|
| Firstly | One reason is … |
| Secondly | A more important factor is … |
| In addition | This pattern extends to … |
| For instance | Consider … |
| In conclusion | On balance … |
Each replacement signals how the idea relates to what came before, which is what CC actually grades.
3. Vocabulary used incorrectly to sound impressive
The pattern: "A plethora of individuals partake in the ramifications of this paradigm shift." The student means: "Many people are affected by this change." The first version sounds more impressive. The first version is graded down.
The cost: LR is the criterion examiners are most suspicious of forced impressiveness. The descriptor explicitly mentions "awareness of style and collocation". A word used incorrectly is a worse signal than a simpler word used correctly.
The fix: When a less common word feels uncertain, fall back to the precise plain word. "Affect" is fine. "Many" is fine. Save your advanced vocabulary for sentences where you're sure of the collocation.
4. Long sentences without subordination
The pattern: Long sentences that are really two or three short sentences glued together with commas:
Many people think that technology is bad for children, technology can be addictive, it also reduces face-to-face interaction.
The cost: GA. A long sentence isn't the same as a complex sentence. Examiners count complex structures (subordinate clauses, participles, conditional inversions) — not character count.
The fix: Use subordinators. Because, although, if, while, despite, which, that. Compare:
Although technology offers benefits, its addictive design and reduction in face-to-face interaction concern many parents.
Same idea. One sentence. Two subordinate clauses. Band 7 GA in one swap.
5. Conclusion that adds new ideas
The pattern: The conclusion paragraph introduces a new argument the body never developed, then attempts to resolve everything in two sentences.
The cost: TR (incomplete development of the new idea) and CC (broken progression — new ideas in a conclusion don't progress, they contradict the structure).
The fix: Your conclusion has one job: restate your position and summarise the two reasons you gave. No new arguments. No new examples. If you have a strong new idea, it belonged in the body and you've ran out of time.
What to do with this
If you can mark four out of five of these in your last essay, that explains your current band. The good news: each one has a mechanical fix. Pick one, drill it for a week, then move to the next.
Want a specific essay diagnosed against these five? Send it to the bot and we'll show you which ones you're doing.