❓Is it worth having each of your #IELTS writing answers assessed in the exam format to track your progress? ❓

I don't think so. Why not?

The way IELTS assessment works is you can't progress to the next score after one work or a small number of works.

If your current level is 6 and your target is 7, you might think the journey will be short because 6 and 7 are right next to each other. But they are, in fact, months of hard work apart. How come?

Let's take grammar (aka "Grammatical Range and Accuracy"). Band 6 means you use a mix of simple and complex structures. Band 7 means you use a variety of complex structures. If you could use a variety of structures, you would be doing it already. If you aren't doing it, it means you can't and you need to master it. This will take time simply because "variety" means "many different structures" and "many different" anything cannot be possibly mastered quickly. So chances are if you got 6 for grammar today, you will also get 6 tomorrow.

The same is true for lexis (aka "Lexical Resource"). In LR, you need to use a range of vocabulary and less common lexical items. Again, if you could do it, you would be doing it already. If you aren't, you need to learn that range. OK, which lexis exactly do you need to learn? Well, lexis is a bottomless abyss. Plus, each topic requires new lexis. Say, you learn "have an innate ability" and "are predisposed to" and you use them masterfully in your essay about learning languages. But then the next essay is about the environment. So suddenly your previous lexis is useless, and you need new lexis, which you don't have at your disposal. Again, you got 6 today and you will get 6 tomorrow.

As a result, each assessment will likely be more or less the same for some time.

But! There is one crucial "but" - if you keep getting the same score every class, it doesn't mean you aren't progressing! Maybe you've learned a new grammar structure or a new lexical item - those don't give you 7 immediately, but they are a step towards 7. The journey to 7 will consist of many small steps rather than one giant lifehack. (And the higher score you need, the longer the journey.)

So, no, I don't think frequent assessments are a good idea. The way IELTS scores work is there is no one thing that will immediately take you to the next band. Each criterion will take a combination of things which cannot be mastered all at once. At the same time, progress might still be happening even if you get 6666 for four essays in a row. It's just that the progress will be too small for the IELTS system to discern it.

Detailed assessments are definitely a good idea. But how frequent should they be?❓