Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Predictions Nov 2026 · 2026-11-06

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Competition between individuals is common in areas such as sport, education and hobbies, and it can influence the way people behave towards friends and classmates. Its effects can be seen in everyday life.

Do you think this is a positive or negative development?

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

Student answer (Band 5.5)

It is human's nature to compete among each other in areas such as sport, education and hobbies. However, these competitions can affect the behaviour of friends and classmates both posatively as well as negatively. I believe it is a positive development because healthy challenge fosters better bond and helps uplift standards among friends. But on the other hand, competitions can get serious some time which lead to disagrement between friends due to ego clash between them.

Firstly, Healthy competition helps find each other's weakness and help solving weakness through mutual practice and genuine feedback. For instance, Ram and Hari used to practice Badminton together, they gave genuine feedback to each other, help train their weak shots because of that they are now International Badminton players for their country Nepal and recently Ram won Olympics medal as well. So, it is important to compete amongst friends and learn from mistakes to grow strong.

Secondly, some people believe due to regular practice together the opponent copied their used illegal substance to enhance their porformence or cheated during exam. Because of their competitive nature they become arogant to accept their loss and this can create dissatisfaction among friends. For example, when I was in school, me and my friend used to play cricket together and there was a rule that bowling fast balls were not allowed but my friend used to do such illegal fast deliveries to win. Therefor, we stoped competing and even we went through a rough patch and stopped talking for over 2 years.

In conclusion, competition helps us grow as long as it is taken positively. Cheating and egos in sports make

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You address the question and state a clear overall view: competition is positive when approached constructively, although it can damage friendships. Both sides are supported with relevant examples, especially the badminton partnership and the cricket disagreement. This meets the task well, but the positive argument is more fully explained than the negative one: the claim that competition helps friends identify weaknesses and improve could be developed further by explaining how this benefits them beyond the example. The second paragraph also introduces cheating and arrogance without clearly distinguishing these as possible consequences rather than inevitable results. The conclusion begins to restate your position but is unfinished, so it does not fully summarise your reasoning. A complete conclusion and more balanced development would strengthen the response.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure, with an introduction, two body paragraphs and a concluding paragraph, and the examples generally follow the points they illustrate. Sequencing words such as “Firstly,” “Secondly,” and “In conclusion” help the reader follow the main stages. However, some connections are unclear or mechanical. The opening presents both positive and negative effects before the position, while “But on the other hand” makes the relationship between these ideas awkward. The second body paragraph begins “some people believe,” but then shifts to a personal example without a clear link. The final sentence stops mid-thought, weakening the overall progression. Use clearer topic sentences and transitions that show how each example supports your argument, and finish the conclusion.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use vocabulary relevant to the topic, including “mutual practice,” “genuine feedback,” “competitive nature,” and “dissatisfaction,” and you attempt to express nuanced ideas about cooperation, cheating and ego. However, inaccurate word choice, collocation and spelling are noticeable and sometimes make the meaning less clear. Examples include “compete among each other,” “better bond,” “ego clash,” and “copied their used illegal substance”; the last phrase is particularly difficult to interpret. There are also spelling errors such as “posatively,” “disagrement,” and “porformence.” Aim for more natural combinations and check spelling carefully. More precise wording would help you explain the consequences of competition without relying on vague or confusing phrases.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt a mix of simple and complex sentences, including clauses with “because,” “which,” and “as long as,” so there is some variety in your sentence construction. However, errors in agreement, verb forms, articles and sentence boundaries are frequent enough to affect clarity. For example, “these competitions can affect” is followed by “both posatively as well as negatively,” and “which lead to disagrement” should use a verb agreeing with “competitions.” In “they gave genuine feedback to each other, help train,” the verb forms are not parallel. The long sentence beginning “some people believe” is also difficult to follow because its clauses are not clearly connected. Practise checking subject–verb agreement and keeping verbs parallel, and divide long sentences where needed.

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