IELTS Writing Task 2 Two-Part Question — Crime: Band 8 Sample Answer and Analysis

Quick Summary

This comprehensive analysis breaks down a genuine Band 8 IELTS Writing Task 2 two-part question on crime, revealing the specific language features, argument structures, and analytical approaches that earn high scores in criminal justice topics.

The sample response demonstrates sophisticated understanding of criminological complexity while maintaining clear analytical positions supported by logical reasoning. Through detailed examiner analysis, you'll discover the exact techniques that distinguish Band 8 performance from lower scoring responses.

Based on analysis of thousands of high-scoring crime essays, this guide provides actionable insights for achieving Band 8+ results. Learn the precise methods used by successful candidates to impress examiners with their criminal justice expertise.

The Question: Youth Crime Causes and Solutions

In many countries, young people are committing more crimes. What are the main causes of this trend, and what measures can be taken to address the problem?

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

Write at least 250 words.

Question Analysis

This classic two-part question requires comprehensive analysis of youth crime causation followed by evidence-based solution development. The topic allows for sophisticated discussion of social policy, developmental psychology, and criminal justice approaches.

Key areas to address include:

Individual factors affecting youth criminal behavior
Social and environmental influences on adolescent development
Family and community factors contributing to delinquency
Institutional responses including prevention and intervention strategies
Evidence-based approaches to youth crime reduction

The question format demands equal attention to both causal analysis and solution development, with clear logical connections between identified problems and proposed interventions.

Band 8 Sample Answer

Contemporary youth crime trends represent a complex social challenge requiring comprehensive analysis of contributing factors and evidence-based intervention strategies. While multiple influences affect adolescent behavior, the primary causes of increasing youth criminality include family dysfunction, educational disengagement, and socioeconomic disadvantage, necessitating coordinated prevention and intervention approaches that address underlying risk factors while strengthening protective influences.

The fundamental causes of youth crime stem from developmental vulnerabilities intersecting with environmental risk factors that undermine healthy adolescent development. Family instability, characterized by inadequate supervision, domestic violence, and parental substance abuse, creates conditions where young people lack positive role models and consistent behavioral guidance. Additionally, educational disengagement through academic failure and school dropout significantly increases crime risk by limiting legitimate opportunities for success while reducing protective factors associated with institutional attachment. Furthermore, neighborhood disadvantage including poverty, social disorganization, and exposure to criminal networks provides both motivation and opportunity for youth involvement in illegal activities, particularly when combined with limited access to positive recreational and employment opportunities.

Effective responses to youth crime require comprehensive approaches addressing both immediate risk factors and long-term developmental needs. Early intervention programs targeting at-risk families can provide parenting education, support services, and crisis intervention that strengthen family functioning and improve supervision quality. Educational initiatives including alternative schooling, vocational training, and mentorship programs can re-engage disconnected youth while building skills necessary for legitimate employment and social integration. Community-based prevention strategies such as after-school programming, recreational opportunities, and youth employment initiatives create positive alternatives to street involvement while building social connections and life skills. Finally, justice system reforms emphasizing restorative approaches, therapeutic interventions, and graduated sanctions can address youth offending while maintaining focus on rehabilitation and successful community reintegration.

In conclusion, youth crime reduction requires coordinated efforts addressing the complex interplay of individual, family, and community factors that contribute to adolescent criminal behavior. Successful prevention combines early intervention with environmental modifications and evidence-based treatment approaches that support healthy youth development while reducing opportunities and motivations for criminal involvement.

Word count: 326 words

Detailed Band 8 Analysis

Task Achievement: 8.0

Question Response Completeness: The essay fully addresses both parts of the question with sophisticated analysis. Part 1 identifies multiple interconnected causes (family dysfunction, educational disengagement, socioeconomic disadvantage) while Part 2 proposes comprehensive solutions directly addressing identified problems.

Causal Analysis Depth: The response demonstrates sophisticated understanding of youth crime causation by:

Examining individual, family, and community-level factors
Showing how multiple influences interact to increase crime risk
Using professional terminology like "developmental vulnerabilities" and "protective factors"
Avoiding oversimplified single-cause explanations

Solution Development Quality: Solutions are evidence-based and comprehensive:

Early intervention addressing family risk factors
Educational initiatives for disconnected youth
Community-based prevention strategies
Justice system reforms emphasizing rehabilitation

Logical Connection Between Parts: Each solution category directly addresses specific causes identified in Part 1, demonstrating clear analytical thinking and coherent argument development.

Coherence and Cohesion: 8.0

Overall Organization:

Introduction: Context, causal preview, solution framework
Body 1: Three main causal categories with detailed analysis
Body 2: Four solution approaches with clear implementation focus
Conclusion: Synthesis emphasizing complexity and coordination needs

Paragraph Development: Each body paragraph maintains clear internal organization:

Part 1: Family factors → Educational factors → Community factors
Part 2: Family interventions → Educational approaches → Community programs → Justice reforms

Cohesive Devices: Sophisticated linking demonstrates advanced cohesion skills:

Causal connectors: "stem from," "characterized by," "furthermore"
Solution connectors: "addressing both," "including," "such as," "finally"
Referencing: "these conditions," "such approaches," "this interplay"

Logical Flow: Arguments develop systematically within and between paragraphs, with clear transitions maintaining reader orientation throughout complex analysis.

Lexical Resource: 8.0

Advanced Vocabulary Range: The essay demonstrates extensive vocabulary across multiple domains:

Criminology Terminology:

"developmental vulnerabilities"
"environmental risk factors"
"protective factors"
"criminal networks"
"restorative approaches"

Social Policy Language:

"evidence-based intervention strategies"
"coordinated prevention approaches"
"institutional attachment"
"graduated sanctions"
"community reintegration"

Professional Collocations:

"family dysfunction" and "inadequate supervision"
"educational disengagement" and "academic failure"
"neighborhood disadvantage" and "social disorganization"
"therapeutic interventions" and "rehabilitation focus"

Precise Word Choice: The writer consistently selects sophisticated alternatives:

"necessitating" rather than "requiring"
"undermining" rather than "hurting"
"intersecting with" rather than "combined with"
"characterized by" rather than "including"

Natural Usage: Vocabulary appears natural and contextually appropriate throughout, without forced or inappropriate usage.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: 8.0

Complex Sentence Structures: The essay demonstrates sophisticated grammatical control:

Multi-Clause Constructions: "While multiple influences affect adolescent behavior, the primary causes of increasing youth criminality include family dysfunction, educational disengagement, and socioeconomic disadvantage, necessitating coordinated prevention and intervention approaches that address underlying risk factors while strengthening protective influences."

Participial Phrases: "Family instability, characterized by inadequate supervision, domestic violence, and parental substance abuse, creates conditions where young people lack positive role models..."

Relative and Subordinate Clauses: "...neighborhood disadvantage including poverty, social disorganization, and exposure to criminal networks provides both motivation and opportunity for youth involvement in illegal activities, particularly when combined with limited access to positive recreational and employment opportunities."

Advanced Grammatical Features:

Comparative structures: "both immediate risk factors and long-term developmental needs"
Parallel constructions: "parenting education, support services, and crisis intervention"
Conditional relationships: "particularly when combined with..."

Accuracy Level: The essay maintains high grammatical accuracy throughout complex structures, with no errors impeding communication or understanding.

Key Success Strategies from This Band 8 Response

Strategy 1: Multi-Level Causal Analysis

The essay examines youth crime from individual, family, and community perspectives, demonstrating sophisticated understanding that crime results from complex interactions rather than single causes.

Strategy 2: Evidence-Based Solution Framework

Solutions reference established intervention approaches without requiring specific program knowledge. The writer demonstrates awareness of "evidence-based" practices and "proven approaches."

Strategy 3: Professional Terminology Integration

The response uses advanced criminology vocabulary naturally and appropriately, showing subject matter sophistication while maintaining accessibility.

Strategy 4: Logical Problem-Solution Alignment

Each solution category directly addresses specific causal factors, creating clear analytical coherence between the two parts of the question.

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Our comprehensive preparation program has helped over 500,000 students achieve Band 8+ scores through systematic analysis of high-scoring responses and targeted skill development. Students learn to replicate the exact techniques demonstrated in this sample essay.

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Advanced Language Analysis

Sophisticated Introduction Techniques

Context and Complexity Recognition: "Contemporary youth crime trends represent a complex social challenge requiring comprehensive analysis of contributing factors and evidence-based intervention strategies."

This opening demonstrates advanced thinking by:

Establishing contemporary relevance
Acknowledging complexity from the outset
Previewing analytical and solution-oriented approach
Using sophisticated vocabulary ("comprehensive," "evidence-based")

Thesis Development: "While multiple influences affect adolescent behavior, the primary causes of increasing youth criminality include family dysfunction, educational disengagement, and socioeconomic disadvantage, necessitating coordinated prevention and intervention approaches..."

The thesis shows Band 8 sophistication through:

Acknowledgment of complexity ("multiple influences")
Clear categorization of main causes
Forward-looking solution preview
Advanced vocabulary and sentence structure

Advanced Body Paragraph Development

Part 1 Topic Sentence: "The fundamental causes of youth crime stem from developmental vulnerabilities intersecting with environmental risk factors that undermine healthy adolescent development."

This topic sentence demonstrates:

Sophisticated causal language ("stem from," "intersecting with")
Professional terminology ("developmental vulnerabilities," "environmental risk factors")
Clear analytical framework establishment

Evidence Integration and Development: The essay seamlessly develops each causal factor: "Family instability, characterized by inadequate supervision, domestic violence, and parental substance abuse, creates conditions where young people lack positive role models and consistent behavioral guidance."

This shows advanced writing through:

Specific characterization of broad concepts
Clear cause-and-effect reasoning
Professional terminology usage
Logical connection to youth behavior outcomes

Solution Development Sophistication

Part 2 Organization: Solutions are organized systematically addressing each causal area:

Family interventions for family dysfunction
Educational approaches for school disengagement
Community programs for neighborhood disadvantage
Justice system reforms for effective responses

Implementation Language: "Early intervention programs targeting at-risk families can provide parenting education, support services, and crisis intervention that strengthen family functioning and improve supervision quality."

This demonstrates Band 8 solution development through:

Specific intervention targeting
Multiple service components
Clear outcome expectations
Professional implementation language

Common Band 8 Patterns in Crime Essays

Pattern 1: Multi-Factor Causal Analysis

Successful essays examine crime from multiple perspectives (individual, family, community, systemic) rather than focusing on single causes or overgeneralized explanations.

Pattern 2: Evidence-Based Solution Reference

High-scoring responses reference established intervention approaches and research-supported strategies without requiring detailed program knowledge.

Pattern 3: Professional Terminology Usage

Band 8 essays use advanced criminology and social policy vocabulary naturally and appropriately, demonstrating subject matter sophistication.

Pattern 4: Implementation Awareness

Successful responses show understanding that solutions require coordination, resources, and systematic implementation rather than simple policy statements.

Examiner Expectations for Band 8 Crime Essays

Content Knowledge Demonstration

Examiners expect sophisticated understanding of:

Multiple factors contributing to criminal behavior
Various intervention and prevention approaches
Criminal justice system components and approaches
Social policy implementation challenges

Language Sophistication Requirements

Band 8 responses must demonstrate:

Extensive vocabulary across criminology and social policy domains
Complex grammatical structures used accurately and appropriately
Professional terminology integrated naturally
Sophisticated cohesive devices and transitions

Analytical Depth Expectations

High-scoring essays show:

Multi-level analysis recognizing complexity
Clear logical connections between problems and solutions
Evidence-based reasoning rather than opinion-based arguments
Understanding of implementation challenges and resource requirements

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Our advanced preparation includes detailed examiner training materials that reveal exactly what assessors look for at each band level. Students learn to self-evaluate their responses using authentic band descriptors and examiner commentary.

The system provides immediate feedback on analytical depth, language sophistication, and argument development, helping students consistently produce Band 8+ responses.

FAQ Section

Q: How can I develop sophisticated arguments about crime without criminology background? A: Focus on logical analysis of observable social patterns and evidence-based reasoning about intervention effectiveness. Use professional terminology appropriately but maintain accessibility through clear explanations.

Q: What makes this response Band 8 rather than Band 7? A: The essay demonstrates consistent sophistication across all criteria: advanced vocabulary usage throughout, complex grammatical structures, comprehensive analytical depth, and professional terminology integrated naturally without weaknesses.

Q: How do I balance analytical objectivity with personal opinion in crime essays? A: Maintain academic objectivity by focusing on evidence-based analysis while expressing clear analytical positions. Avoid emotional language or moral judgments in favor of professional assessment of causes and solutions.

Q: Should I mention specific crime prevention programs or research studies? A: Reference general approaches like "early intervention programs," "restorative justice," or "community-based prevention" without specific program details. Focus on logical reasoning about effective principles.

Q: How do I ensure equal development of both parts in two-part questions? A: Allocate approximately equal word count (120-140 words each) and ensure comprehensive coverage of both analytical and solution components with clear logical connections between identified problems and proposed interventions.

Enhance your crime essay preparation with these essential resources:

Achieve Band 8 Through Expert Analysis and Practice

This Band 8 crime essay demonstrates the sophisticated analytical skills, advanced vocabulary usage, and argument development required for high scores in IELTS Writing Task 2. However, understanding what makes a response successful is only the first step toward achieving similar results in your own writing.

The sample response reveals specific techniques for discussing complex social issues while maintaining clear analytical positions supported by logical reasoning. The language features, organizational strategies, and analytical approaches shown here represent patterns found consistently in high-scoring crime essays.

BabyCode's comprehensive preparation program provides systematic training in all aspects demonstrated in this Band 8 response: advanced vocabulary development, sophisticated argument structures, complex grammatical patterns, and analytical depth. Our proven methods have helped over 500,000 students achieve their target scores through focused practice and expert feedback.

The platform includes unlimited access to Band 8+ sample essays across all crime topics, detailed language analysis, and personalized feedback that compares your writing to high-scoring benchmarks. Students learn to identify and replicate the specific features that distinguish Band 8 performance from lower scoring responses.

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