Exploring one’s family background and history is becoming increasingly popular in numerous countries around the world. In my opinion, through research and knowing more about one’s family, people can see common trends passed through generations and useful information which can only be seen as beneficial for people’s future. Firstly, some people look into their family history in order to discover any common trends with family members of a previous generation. This can be especially so with people who have particular skills, gifts or interests in uncommon fields. In other words, as some gifts and skills are hereditary, it can be interesting for people to learn how many others in their family shared these talents from previous generations. Another reason for the popularity of finding out about one’s family history is often due to general geographical origins. That is to say, some families moved abroad, away from their own country, resulted in them losing their original culture and adopting the culture of the country they moved to. Therefore, through research, people can learn more about their country of origin and understand more about the culture that their family originally came from. Finally, the trend of researching family history is certainly beneficial and can help people find their place in the world. Some people feel a lack of direction in life or are dislocated from others but by learning more about their past family history, it can help them relate to the world and feel more comfortable about who they are. Take, for example, a person who feels nervous about making a certain choice comforted by knowing that others in their family made the same choice many generations ago. In conclusion, it can be advantageous for people to learn more about the family’s background and origins. It would be useful for children to learn about their own family history, if this was incorporated into the school curriculum.
Researching Family History and Genealogy
In some parts of the world, it is becoming increasingly popular to try to find out the history of someone’s family. Why do you think people do this? Do you think it is a positive or negative development?
Annotated response
5 correction notes
Overall assessment
Why this response received Band 7.0
The response directly answers both parts of the question with a clear, consistent position and well-chosen reasons supported by explanation and examples. Its strongest aspect is the fluent, well-organised development of ideas, while the main limitation is a tendency toward formulaic linkers and occasionally imprecise phrasing rather than any gap in content or language control.
IELTS criteria
How each score was decided
Task Response
7.5The response addresses both questions fully, presents a clear positive evaluation, and develops each reason with relevant explanation and a concrete example.
Coherence and Cohesion
7.0Ideas progress logically across clearly focused paragraphs, though cohesion relies somewhat mechanically on predictable sequencers and linking phrases.
Lexical Resource
7.0Vocabulary is sufficiently flexible and topical, with natural collocations such as 'hereditary', 'geographical origins', and 'dislocated from others', alongside occasional awkward phrasing.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
7.0A range of complex structures is used with generally good control, though some sentences show minor faulty construction, such as dangling introductory phrases and pronoun reference slips.