Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Barron's Writing · 2026-08-20
IELTS Writing Task 2 question
Some people say that physical education classes are an important part of a child's education. Others believe that it is more important to focus on academics during school time.
Discuss both these views, and give your opinion.
Give reasons for your answer, and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.
Student answer (Band 6.5)
Some people opine that physical education plays an essential part in a child's life while, others oppose that school should pay more attention to the academics. This essay will discuss both view before I explain why I believe that balanced approach between the both is best.
On the one hand, physical education plays a significant role in child's overall development. Regular physical activities helps student to reduce the risk of obesity and encourage healthy lifestyle from an early age. Secondly, students spend most of their time on electronics devices, physical activities helps them to stay active and focused. Lastly, sports and physical activities helps child to develop important life skills such as team work, leadership which helps them in their professional and personal lives.
On the other hand, parents feel that their children spend less time in the school thus, more attentions should be paid to academic subjects such as mathematics, science and languages which will help in providing the knowledge and qualification needed for higher education. Moreover, students should get more time to focus on the academics so they can prepare for competitive exams for the university admissions and scholarships. As a result, they believe that additional focus on academics is better than increasing time for physical activities
In my opinion, although academic achievement is undoubtedly important, physical education should also remain compulsory. As they say healthy body supports healthy mind, student who exercise daily are more focused and energetic. Therefore, school should aim to provide balanced education.
In concussion, where academics is important for their future success, physical education contributes greatly to their health and personal development, Thus, schools should maintain a balanced approach between the both so the chid is prepared for the all aspects of the life.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 7.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 7.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 6.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 6.0 |
| Overall | 6.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0
The response addresses all parts of the prompt, discussing both views and providing a clear personal opinion. The ideas are relevant and logically extended, such as the benefits of physical education for health and life skills, and the academic focus for future university success. The position is consistent throughout the essay. To reach a higher band, the development of ideas could be slightly more nuanced; for example, providing a specific example of a life skill or a particular academic pressure would strengthen the argument. Overall, the task is well-covered and the position is clearly stated.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0
The essay is logically organized with a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Each paragraph has a central topic, and cohesive devices such as 'On the one hand', 'Moreover', and 'In conclusion' are used effectively to guide the reader. However, there are some minor mechanical issues with cohesion, such as the slightly awkward phrasing in the introduction ('discuss both view') and some repetitive sentence structures. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate the different viewpoints and the author's opinion, ensuring a smooth progression of ideas throughout the text.
Lexical Resource — Band 6.0
The vocabulary is generally adequate and allows for clear communication. The student uses some topic-specific vocabulary like 'overall development', 'competitive exams', and 'scholarships'. However, there are some minor errors in word choice and collocation, such as 'opine' (which is slightly unnatural in this context) and 'balanced approach between the both' (which is redundant). The range is sufficient for the task, but a more sophisticated use of collocations and less reliance on basic phrasing would elevate the score. Spelling is generally accurate, with only minor slips.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0
The essay demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is always clear, there are frequent minor grammatical errors, such as subject-verb agreement issues ('activities helps', 'student who exercise') and missing articles ('in child's life', 'for the all aspects'). Punctuation is generally functional, though there are some missing commas after introductory phrases. The errors do not impede communication, but they are frequent enough to prevent a higher score. Increasing the variety of complex structures while ensuring grammatical accuracy would be beneficial.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.