Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-09-06

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Nowadays many people complain that they have difficulties getting enough sleep. What problems can lack of sleep cause? What can be done about lack of sleep?

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

 

Student answer (Band 6.5)

In today's evolving world, many people find it difficult to get enough sleep because of their busy lifestyles, work pressure and excessive use of technology. Lack of sleep can have serious effects on both physical and mental health. However, there are several solution to deal with this situation.

Out of all the arguments, one of the prominent cause of insufficient sleep is poor concentration. People who do not enough sleep well feel tired during the day and may find difficult to focus on their work or studies. As a consequence, some people can reduce their productivity and make more mistakes. For instance, a person who sleeps only four to five hours may struggle to concentrate while driving or reading. In addition, long term sleep disturbance can negatively affect physical health. It may weaken the immune system and increase health problems such as obesity and heart problems. Poor sleep can also affect mental well-being, causing stress, depression and lack of motivation.

Nevertheless, there are several ways to improve the quality of sleep. Firstly, people should follow a regular sleeping schedule by going to bed and waking up at same times every day. As a result, people can get enough sleep and do better in daily activities. Secondly, individuals also reduce their use of mobile phones, computers and other electronics devices before bedtime, as these can keep their brain active. Furthermore, avoiding coffee and other caffeine drinks in the evening can help people fall asleep more easily. Moreover, employers could also help giving proving wok hours and discouraging overtime.

In conclusion, lack of sleep can lead to poor concentration, mental and health problems. However, these problems should mitigate through maintaining a regular sleep routine, reducing scree time and following healthier habits can greatly improve sleep quality.

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response6.5
Coherence and Cohesion6.5
Lexical Resource6.0
Grammatical Range and Accuracy6.0
Overall6.5

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The response addresses both parts of the prompt: the consequences of sleep deprivation and potential solutions. The ideas are relevant and generally well-developed, such as the mention of productivity loss and health implications. However, the essay suffers from some minor lapses in clarity and logical flow. For instance, the first sentence of the second paragraph identifies 'poor concentration' as a 'cause' of sleep deprivation, whereas it is actually an effect. This slight confusion in terminology slightly impacts the overall clarity of the argument. Nevertheless, the response covers all requirements of the task effectively.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The essay is logically organized into four paragraphs, with a clear introduction, two body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Cohesive devices are used throughout, such as 'In addition', 'Nevertheless', and 'Firstly'. However, some of these devices are used slightly mechanically, and there are occasional issues with referencing and sentence structure that make the flow feel a bit rigid. For example, the final sentence of the conclusion is grammatically disjointed, which disrupts the logical progression of the summary. Overall, the paragraphing is appropriate and the progression of ideas is generally easy to follow.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, allowing the writer to convey their ideas clearly. There is an attempt to use topic-specific vocabulary such as 'sleep disturbance', 'immune system', and 'productivity'. However, there are some errors in word choice and collocation, such as 'help giving proving wok hours' (likely meant 'help by providing working hours') and 'these problems should mitigate' (should be 'should be mitigated'). These errors do not impede communication, but they do limit the range of vocabulary to a level that is functional rather than sophisticated.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The student uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While many sentences are clear, there are frequent grammatical errors, such as 'one of the prominent cause' (should be 'causes'), 'do not enough sleep well' (should be 'do not sleep well'), and 'at same times' (should be 'at the same time'). Additionally, the final sentence contains a significant structural error: 'these problems should mitigate through maintaining... can greatly improve'. This lack of control over complex sentence construction prevents the essay from reaching a higher band. However, the meaning remains clear throughout.

See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.

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