Task 2Problem & solutionEstimated band 8

See what a high band reads like.

280 words by a whitespace count. This teaching example has an AI-estimated band, not an official examiner score. Read the commentary, then attempt the question yourself.

“Antibiotic resistance is becoming a serious global threat. What are the main causes, and what can be done?”

Attempt this question

Model answer

280 words

P1The decline in the effectiveness of antibiotics represents one of the gravest threats to public health in the modern era. This essay examines the principal causes of this crisis and proposes measures at both individual and systemic levels to address it.

P2The overuse and misuse of antibiotics are the central drivers of resistance. In many countries, antibiotics are sold without prescription, allowing patients to self-medicate for viral infections against which antibiotics are wholly ineffective, a practice that selects for resistant bacterial strains without providing any therapeutic benefit. Agricultural use is equally problematic: livestock industries administer antibiotics routinely to promote growth and prevent disease in cramped conditions, producing reservoirs of resistant bacteria that enter human food chains and the wider environment. Globally, the development pipeline for new antibiotics also remains insufficient because pharmaceutical companies find it commercially unattractive to invest in drugs that are prescribed sparingly and sell cheaply.

Addressing the crisis requires action on several fronts simultaneously. Stricter regulation is essential: governments must enforce prescription requirements and impose tight limits on agricultural antibiotic use, as the European Union has done with some success. Surveillance systems capable of tracking resistance patterns across borders would allow earlier detection of emerging threats. At the same time, incentivising pharmaceutical research through public funding and guaranteed purchase agreements could restore the commercial viability of antibiotic development. Finally, public education campaigns must shift the widespread misconception that antibiotics are a general cure-all, reducing demand for inappropriate prescriptions.

Your turn. Same question, same 40 minutes.

Write your answer in the exam workspace and see how your four marks compare to the model’s.

Attempt this question

Teaching commentary

Move 01

Clearly organised into distinct cause and solution sections with logical sequencing throughout.

Move 02

Agricultural use and the broken pharmaceutical pipeline are specific, often-overlooked causes that demonstrate depth of knowledge.

Move 03

EU regulation cited as concrete evidence that policy action has worked.

Move 04

The closing analogy to climate change is rhetorically effective and appropriate in register.

Now you

Reading a model ≠ writing one. Attempt the same question now, then review your feedback alongside this example.

Write it now

AI-estimated criteria

Task Response8

Coherence & cohesion8

Lexical resource8

Grammar8.5

Overall8

Points to review

Limit 01

The essay could briefly acknowledge international coordination challenges (e.g., differing regulatory standards) to make the solution section feel more grounded.