Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Barron's Writing · 2026-08-12

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Some people feel that the government should pay the costs of running universities so that a university education will be free for anyone who wants it.

To what extent do you agree or disagree with this opinion?

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

Student answer (Band 6.0)

In this contemporary society, as studying has become essential, most young people want to get degree. A wide range of people believe that the costs of running universities should be covered by the government, so education will be free and available who deserve it. I extremely support this notion for some reasons which I will explain in the following paragraphs.

To begin with, a free education is a great opportunity for those whom truly dedicated to their career. That means talented students could reach their maximum potential, no matter what their family's financial situation is. Therefore, it created a fair conditions for all the students. For instance, in Europe 90% of republic universities are covered by the government so, anyone can get education and in which course they want to enroll to make their career.

Moreover, paying for education may lead to cause stress and pressure for them and their families. Thus, it demotivate learners and make them give up on their studies as, they may think that it is not worth it. To exemplify this, in India students have to pay for their studies after graduation; therefore, they think that it is not suitable for them.

In conclusion, it is becoming a widespread belief that university education should be free. Personally, I totally agree with this ideas because of its various advantages.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses the prompt and maintains a clear position throughout. However, the essay fails to meet the minimum word count requirement of 250 words, which significantly impacts the development of ideas. While the arguments regarding equal opportunity and financial stress are relevant, they are somewhat underdeveloped due to the brevity of the response. To achieve a higher band, you must expand your supporting points with more detailed explanations and perhaps a more nuanced exploration of the counter-argument. The conclusion is also quite brief and does not fully synthesize the points made in the body paragraphs.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, and there is a clear progression of ideas. You use basic cohesive devices such as 'To begin with', 'Moreover', and 'In conclusion' to link your thoughts. However, the connection between sentences is sometimes mechanical, and the flow could be improved by using a wider variety of linking words and better referencing. For example, the transition between the idea of financial stress and the example in India is a bit abrupt. Improving the use of cohesive devices within paragraphs would help the text read more naturally.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, but it lacks the range and precision required for higher bands. You use some repetitive phrasing, such as 'costs of running universities' and 'pay for their studies'. There are also minor collocation issues, such as 'I extremely support this notion' (should be 'strongly support') and 'it created a fair conditions' (should be 'it creates fair conditions'). To improve, try to incorporate more sophisticated vocabulary related to education and economics, and pay closer attention to word forms and collocations.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The essay contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. However, there are frequent grammatical errors that occasionally hinder the flow. Examples include 'available who deserve it' (missing 'to those'), 'whom truly dedicated' (should be 'who are truly dedicated'), and 'it demotivate learners' (should be 'it demotivates'). Additionally, there are issues with article usage and subject-verb agreement. While these errors do not completely impede communication, they are frequent enough to prevent a higher score. Focus on proofreading for basic subject-verb agreement and ensuring that complex sentences are constructed accurately.

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.