Why are so many students stuck at a 6.5 for IELTS writing?

Today, Nick and I discuss one of the most important IELTS questions - why are so many students stuck at a 6.5 for IELTS writing? Is it because there is a conspiracy to trick test-takers, or are there other less sinister reasons? You can find the full episode notes and a transcript of the conversation at http://podcast.myieltsclassroom.com/This is a re-run of an episode from 2020, so don't be surprised if Nick and I sound so youthful!Episode NotesFollowing on from our lesson last week, today we look at the most common IELTS myth -  examiners are changing test-takers writing scores on purpose to prevent them getting a 7.0. Is there really any evidence for this? Well PC Lone and Sargent Cornick will investigate to find out! Then, we will spend the rest of the episode discussing the most common errors in that we saw when we were examiners when marking students' essays. Are you making these mistakes? Well, join the episode to find out!In this episode, we will discuss:if it is possible that Cambridge, the British Council, IDP, examiners, or individual test centres are changing scores of purposively making it hard for students to get a 7.0 in IELTS writing?why students tend to get a lower score in writing than in the other parts of testthe most common errors that we see with Task Response, Coherence and Cohesion, Lexical Resource, Grammatical Range and Accuracy that stop students getting a 7.0 for their IELTS essayUseful Links Find out the three most difficult essay questions in the Cambridge IELTS books: http://blog.myieltsclassroom.com/cambridge-ielts-books/Complete my free lesson for subject / verb agreement: http://blog.myieltsclassroom.com/ielts-grammar-subject-verb-agreement/Watch my free video lesson for articles: https://www.myieltsclassroom.com/programs/articlesWatch my free video lesson for contrast clauses: https://www.myieltsclassroom.com/programs/three-types-of-contrastRate and review My IELTS ClassroomIf you are on Apple Podcasts, help us to help more people just like you by rating and reviewing our show. Reviews let other students - just like you - find our information-packed episodes and start their IELTS journey in the best possible way. Remember, My IELTS Classroom offers a range of IELTS services:IELTS Video courses: https://www.myieltsclassroom.com/pages/writingIELTS Essay Corrections:https://www.myieltsclassroom.com/pages/markingIELTS Speaking lessons: https://www.myieltsclassroom.com/pages/speakingFree blog lessons: http://blog.myieltsclassroom.comFree Podcast episodes: https://myieltsclassroom.buzzsprout.comSupport the show