# Social media: discuss both views: IELTS Writing Task 2 samples Writing Task 2 - Technology Some people think that social media has brought people closer together, while others believe it has made people more isolated. Discuss both these views and give your own opinion. Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience. Write at least 250 words. Source: Sample answers and examiner notes are written by Testmigo. ## Band 6 sample Social media like Facebook, Instagram and TikTok is used by billions of people today. Some people think it brings people closer, but other people believe it makes them more lonely. I will discuss both views and give my opinion. On the one hand, social media helps people to keep in touch with friends and relatives. For example, when I moved to another city for my university, I could still see what my old school friends were doing and chat with them every day. Also, people can find new friends who has the same hobbies as them, such as cooking or football, even they live in different countries. In this way, social media connects people around the world. On the other hand, many people think social media makes people isolated. People spend many hours looking at their phones and they do not talk with their family in the same room. In my house, my younger sister is always on Instagram during the dinner and she does not join the conversation. Moreover, people only show the best part of their life on social media, so others feel that their own life is boring and they become sad and lonely. In my opinion, social media can bring people closer, but only if they use it in correct way. If people use it to contact with friends and family, it is very useful. However, if they spend all their free time scrolling the posts of strangers, it makes them isolated from real people. In conclusion, social media has both good and bad effects. I believe that it depend on how people use it, so everyone should keep a balance between online and offline life. **Examiner notes.** This Band 6 essay discusses both views and gives an opinion, and the personal examples, such as the sister who is "always on Instagram during the dinner", are relevant. However, the opinion paragraph mostly repeats points from the body, and the conclusion ("social media has both good and bad effects") is vague. Errors such as "who has the same hobbies", "even they live" and "in correct way" are frequent but do not block meaning. For Band 7, the writer would need to develop each view more fully and state a clearer, more specific opinion. ## Band 7 sample Social media platforms now play a central role in how people communicate. Some argue that they have strengthened human relationships, whereas others claim they have left people more isolated than ever. In my view, social media can do both, but its overall effect depends on whether it supports or replaces face-to-face contact. Those who believe social media brings people together point to its power to maintain relationships across distance. Migrant workers, for example, can follow their children's daily lives through photos and video messages, and old classmates who lost contact years ago can easily find one another again. Social media also allows people with uncommon interests or problems, such as a rare illness, to join online communities where they feel understood, something that would have been almost impossible a generation ago. On the other hand, critics argue that online interaction is often shallow. A "like" or a short comment requires little effort, and some people collect hundreds of online friends while having very few close relationships in real life. Furthermore, many users constantly compare themselves with the carefully edited lives they see on their screens, which can lead to feelings of inadequacy and loneliness. Young people, who spend the most time on these platforms, seem particularly vulnerable to this. Personally, I believe that social media brings people closer when it is used to keep in touch with real friends and family, but it becomes isolating when it takes the place of meeting people in person. For instance, a group chat used to arrange a weekend football match strengthens a friendship, whereas hours of scrolling alone in a bedroom does not. In conclusion, both views contain some truth. Social media is neither good nor bad in itself, and its effect on our relationships depends largely on how we choose to use it. **Examiner notes.** This Band 7 essay presents both views fairly and gives a clear opinion: social media connects people when it supports real relationships but isolates when it "takes the place of meeting people in person". The football group chat is an effective concrete contrast, and phrases such as "feelings of inadequacy" show good lexical control. The conclusion, however, retreats to "both views contain some truth", which softens the position. A Band 8 essay would explain why some uses isolate and others connect, and keep the opinion sharp to the end. The Band 8 sample is free with an account on the [topic page](https://testmigo.com/ielts/writing/topics/task-2/social-media-discuss-both-views). ## Common questions ### How many words should I write? At least 150 words for Task 1 and 250 for Task 2. Writing a little more is fine; an answer under the minimum loses marks. ### Can I use these sample answers in my test? No. Memorised material is marked down and you will not get this exact question. Use the samples to see what each band does with the same task.