Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Barron's Writing · 2026-09-09

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

In many parts of the world, people rely on private cars for transportation.

In what ways does reliance on private cars affect the way we live?

Do the effects tend to be positive or negative?

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

Student answer (Band 6.5)

In many parts of world, people highly reliance on the private cars and become main means of transport. Although, owing and using car provides people with more freedom and convenience, I believe that excessive reliance on private vehicle has more negative effect on our lives than positive one.

One major way in which private car affects our lives is by making daily travel more convenient. People can travel directly from their homes to workplace, schools, shopping centers and other destinations without depending on public transport. Cars are particularly useful for families, elderly people and those who living in areas where public transport is limited. For example, someone who living in a suburban area may need a car to travel to workplace because buses may be infrequent or unavailable.

However, heavy dependence on cars can negatively impact both society and individuals. Firstly, spending a significant amount of time to travel can lead to stress and reduce opportunities for physical activity. People who drive even short distances less likely to walk or cycle, which can contribute to an unhealthy lifestyle. Secondly, widespread car use causes traffic congestion especially in large cities. Commuters may spend several hours every week stuck in traffic, reducing the amount of time available for family, leisure activities or work.

Another serious consequence is environmental damage. Cars that use petrol or diesel produce greenhouse gases and other pollutants, contributing to climate change and poor air quality. In addition, increased number of cars required more roads and parking spaces, which can reduce green areas and make cities less pleasant to live in. For instance, many major cities experience serious congestion and air pollution partly because of the large number of private vehicles on their roads.

In conclusion, private car provides considerable convenience and independence. Excessive reliance on them tend to have more negative effects because it contributes to sedentary lifestyles, traffic congestion and environmental pollution. Therefore, government should improves public transport and encourage walking and cycling so that people have practical alternative to private cars.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0

The response addresses all parts of the prompt, clearly identifying the ways in which private car reliance affects life and taking a firm stance that the effects are predominantly negative. The ideas are well-developed, with distinct paragraphs covering convenience, social/individual impacts, and environmental consequences. The position is consistent throughout the essay. To reach a higher band, the student could provide more nuanced examples or explore the counter-argument in greater depth to demonstrate a more sophisticated level of critical thinking.

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 sentence, and the progression of ideas is easy to follow. Cohesive devices such as 'However', 'Firstly', 'In addition', and 'In conclusion' are used effectively to link ideas. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate distinct themes. The flow is generally smooth, though some transitions could be slightly more varied to avoid a mechanical feel.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The vocabulary is sufficient to convey the intended meaning clearly. The student uses topic-specific terms like 'greenhouse gases', 'sedentary lifestyles', and 'traffic congestion'. There are some minor errors in word form and collocation, such as 'people highly reliance' (should be 'rely heavily') and 'increased number of cars required' (should be 'require'). While the range is adequate for the task, it lacks the more sophisticated, precise, or idiomatic vocabulary required for higher bands.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The student uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is always clear, there are frequent grammatical errors, particularly with subject-verb agreement and article usage (e.g., 'In many parts of world', 'someone who living', 'government should improves'). These errors are noticeable but do not impede communication. To improve, the student should focus on proofreading for basic grammatical accuracy and attempting a wider variety of complex sentence structures with greater precision.

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

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