It is an unfortunate reality of today's world that celebrities are cherished and celebrated, not for their achievements, but merely for their fame and wealth. Youth, in particular, views such worldly possessions of celebrities as the highest mark of human achievement. No wonder this trend has devastating effects on the younger generation. To prove this, one has to analyse how youth perceives celebrities' success in general and the fact that many amongst them for youth to look up to. Firstly, very few young people realise that all the fame and glory that the celebrities get to enjoy is never achieved overnight, rather it is all blood, sweat and tears. It takes years and years of struggle to get to that point, which many youngsters choose not to go through, rather, they look for shortcuts towards success. , they are overcome with procrastination and laziness, which is a direct consequence of idealising the of . Secondly, one should consider the fact that a number of superstars in the entertainment business are infamous who should not be looked up to in any way. For instance, musicians who use extremely obscure lyrical themes in their music, or the actors working in biographical movies dedicated to serial killers etc. These instances show that when youth venerates such forms of entertainment, they are somehow led to believe that they can also become as famous and successful merely by imitating . Hence, the negative influence of such a trend is obvious. Having analysed how glorifying the rich people, not for their hard-earned achievements, but merely for their worldly possessions, can affect youth's perception of success, it is proven that this tendency does set a bad example. It is highly recommended that youth should be encouraged to realise that a man's worth should not be judged by his possessions, rather by the journey he goes through to achieve those possessions.
Sample response & feedback
Celebrity Glamour, Wealth, and Impact on Youth
Question
Nowadays celebrities are more famous for their glamour and wealth than for their achievements, and this sets a bad example for young people. To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement?
Annotated response
15 correction notes
Overall assessment
Why this response received Band 6.5
The response presents a clear, consistent position of full agreement and develops it through two reasonably supported main ideas with logical progression and some idiomatic vocabulary. Its main limitation is uneven idea development, occasional forced phrasing and errors such as 'don't pose the right kind of image', and support that sometimes relies on assertion rather than fully elaborated explanation.
IELTS criteria
How each score was decided
TR Task Response
7.0The response fully agrees with the statement, presents a clear consistent position, and develops two relevant main ideas, though support sometimes leans on assertion and generalisation rather than fully elaborated evidence.
CC Coherence and Cohesion
5.5The sequence of introduction, two arguments and conclusion is signposted by “Firstly,” “Secondly” and “Having analysed,” but the essay is one unbroken paragraph. Some causal links and references are unclear, including the move from seeking shortcuts to procrastination.
LR Lexical Resource
7.0Vocabulary is sufficiently flexible and includes natural idiomatic expressions like 'blood, sweat and tears' and 'venerates', though occasional awkward or inaccurate collocations such as 'worldly possessions of their ideals' reduce precision.
GRA Grammatical Range and Accuracy
6.5Complex structures are attempted, including relative clauses and participial openings, but recurring comma splices, an example sentence without a main verb and a dangling “Having analysed” clause weaken control. Much of the intended meaning remains recoverable.