Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-10-26

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

In a number of countries, some people think it is necessary to spend large sums of money on constructing new railway lines for very fast trains between cities. Others believe the money should be spent on improving existing public transport.

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.

 

Student answer (Band 6.0)

It is widely debated today, that some people believe that it is essential to spend a lot of money to build new railway lines for very fast trains between cities. whereas,others believe that the money should be spent on the improvement of existing public transport. Both sides have strong arguments. This essay will examine both, advantages of building new railway lines and benefits of improving existing public transports and then present my opinion.

Those who supports that government funds should spent on constructing new railway lines for fast trains believe that it is necessary that government should focus on trying new technology, rather than being stagnant. They belive that building railway lines between cities for fast trains will have a positive impact on society, in terms of convenience and development. For instance, if a country has a built train between its cities, it will save people's time by hours. they can use their time in other important activities. This will have a positive impact in the productivity of citizens.

On the other hand, people who believe that money shoulld be spent on improving existing public support, belives that improving existing facilities is more necessary than constructing new one. They believe that the transportaion which is currently being used, also need attention. For example, if government will not focus on repairing the faults in transports that is being used, they will eventually stop working or start having problems in their functioning.

In my opinion money should be spent on constructing new railway lines because it is crucial to save travel time and use it in other productive activities

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You address both views and give a clear preference for building new railway lines, so the response is relevant to the task. The first view is supported with a reason—faster journeys may improve citizens’ productivity—and the second with the possibility that neglected transport will develop faults. However, these points are brief and general: the discussion does not explain, for example, who would benefit most from high-speed links or how investment in existing services could improve daily travel. Your opinion appears only in the final paragraph and repeats the time-saving argument rather than weighing the two options. Develop each side with more specific explanation and make your position clear earlier. The response meets the stated length requirement; the nine words copied from the task prompt were not counted.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The response has a clear overall arrangement: an introduction, one paragraph for each view, and a concluding opinion. This makes the main progression easy to follow, and signposts such as “On the other hand” help distinguish the contrasting arguments. The opening also tells the reader what the essay will cover. To strengthen cohesion further, connect examples more explicitly to the claims they support and avoid relying on formulaic transitions alone. For instance, the final paragraph could refer back to the concern about existing transport and explain why your preferred investment is more important. Some sentence boundaries and punctuation also interrupt the flow, such as the lowercase “whereas” after a full stop and “they” beginning a new sentence in lowercase.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use enough topic-related vocabulary to communicate the main ideas, including “railway lines,” “public transport,” “convenience,” “productivity,” and “repairing the faults.” There are also attempts at more formal phrasing, such as “a positive impact on society.” However, the range is limited and several choices or forms are inaccurate or repetitive. “Public support” does not express the intended meaning of public transport, while “existing public transports” and “constructing new one” are awkward forms. Spelling errors such as “belive,” “shoulld,” and “transportaion” are noticeable. Aim for more precise transport-related terms and check spelling and word forms carefully; this will make the argument sound clearer and more natural.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mixture of simple statements and longer clauses, including conditional structures such as “if a country has a built train between its cities” and “if government will not focus on repairing the faults.” These attempts show some range, but control is inconsistent, and errors sometimes make the intended meaning less clear. Examples include “Those who supports,” “government funds should spent,” and “improving existing facilities is more necessary than constructing new one,” which contain agreement, verb-form, and number errors. The conditional sentences also need more accurate forms, for example, “If the government does not focus on repairing faults, the services may eventually stop working.” Review subject–verb agreement, articles, and conditional patterns, and proofread sentence openings and punctuation.

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

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