Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-08-14

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Some people believe that allowing children to make their own choices on everyday matters (such as food, clothes and entertainment) is likely to result in a society of individuals who only think about their own wishes. Other people believe that it is important for children to make decisions about matters that affect them.

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 6.5)

In modern societies, there is an ongoing debate on whether juveniles and teenagers should have freedom to make their decisions about their daily life matters. Some people think that it will make them selfish, while others argue that it will improve their decision making abilities. In this essay, I will discuss both sides before presenting my opinion in favor of the latter statement.

On one hand, people say that children and young individuals should be allowed to make decisions about their routine activities, such as choice of food, outfits, and entertainment. It enables them to learn about importance of decisions and their possible pros and cons. For instance, if they decide to wear thin layered clothes in winter, let them do it. They will learn from their experience and will not repeat the same mistake in their future. In addition, it will improve their decision making abilities and they will not seek validation from others in their adulthood.

On the other hand, others believe that children and teenagers should not have freedom to live on their choices because it will make them reluctant to understand the feelings of others. As a result, they will lack empathy, may hurt emotions of other individuals and become problematic for society. Moreover, they may also harm themselves, as young individuals are not mature enough to understand what choices are right for them.

In my opinion, juveniles and young generation should have freedom to make decisions under the supervision of parents or mentors. For example, parents should give them limited options for food or clothes and allow them to select one according to their wish. Consequently, they will feel valued and become self-reliant as well as confident.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The response addresses all parts of the prompt, discussing both views and providing a clear personal opinion. The ideas are relevant and generally well-developed. For instance, the argument regarding the development of decision-making skills is supported by a practical example about clothing choices. However, the discussion on the opposing view—that children might become selfish—is slightly less developed compared to the first body paragraph. The conclusion effectively synthesizes the arguments by suggesting a balanced approach of 'supervised freedom.' To reach a higher band, the student could provide more depth in the counter-argument section to ensure a more balanced exploration of the potential negative consequences mentioned in the prompt.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The essay is logically organized with a clear introduction, two body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Cohesive devices such as 'On one hand,' 'In addition,' 'On the other hand,' and 'Consequently' are used effectively to guide the reader through the argument. Paragraphing is used appropriately, with each paragraph focusing on a distinct aspect of the topic. The progression of ideas is smooth, and the relationship between sentences is generally clear. While the structure is sound, the transition between the second body paragraph and the conclusion could be slightly more sophisticated to enhance the overall flow of the argument.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The vocabulary is sufficient for the task and allows for some precision, such as 'self-reliant,' 'validation,' and 'juveniles.' The student demonstrates an awareness of collocation, though there are occasional minor inaccuracies, such as 'live on their choices' (better: 'live according to their own choices') and 'hurt emotions of other individuals' (better: 'hurt the feelings of others'). The range of vocabulary is adequate to convey the intended meaning clearly, but it lacks the more sophisticated, idiomatic, or less common lexical items that would characterize a higher band score.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.5

The student uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There is good control over basic grammar, and complex structures are attempted with reasonable success, such as the conditional sentence: 'if they decide to wear thin layered clothes in winter, let them do it.' However, there are some minor errors, such as missing articles ('the importance of decisions') and slightly awkward phrasing ('young generation' should be 'the young generation'). These errors are infrequent and do not impede communication. To improve, the student should focus on article usage and refining the accuracy of complex sentence constructions.

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

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