Band 4.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 4.0 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-11-09

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Some people think that competition at work, at school and in daily life is a good thing. Others believe that we should try to cooperate more, rather than competing against each other.

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 4.0)

Many people say that competition at work and school is a good thing in daily life. At my opinion, it's good because when you compare yourself with successful people and you have nothing or unsucess, so you can start working hard and you can struggle and focused your work and dreams, and after some time you learn more thing and get skills or experience.

On the other hand

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 3.0

The response makes a relevant start by presenting competition as beneficial: comparing yourself with successful people may motivate you to work hard and gain skills. However, it does not discuss the opposing view of cooperation, and the phrase “On the other hand” is left unfinished. Your own position is only briefly indicated and is not supported with a developed example or explanation. The response is also substantially below the required 250 words, so there is not enough material to address the task’s parts. To improve, explain both sides, state your view clearly, and develop each main point with a specific example and its consequences.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 3.5

There is a basic attempt to organise the response: it begins with a view about competition and then signals a contrast with “On the other hand.” This gives the reader some indication of direction. However, the contrast is never completed, and the response ends without a conclusion, so there is no overall progression through the discussion. Most of the first point is packed into one long sentence, with several ideas joined mainly by “and,” which makes their relationships difficult to follow. Use separate paragraphs for the two views and your opinion, and connect ideas with clear references and transitions rather than leaving a linking phrase unsupported.

Lexical Resource: Band 4.5

The response uses a small set of relevant words, including “competition,” “successful,” “working hard,” “skills,” and “experience,” so the central topic is generally understandable. There are also attempts to express motivation and personal development. However, the range is limited, and some choices or forms are inaccurate or unnatural, such as “unsucess,” “focused your work,” and “learn more thing.” These errors sometimes make the intended meaning less clear. Build a more precise vocabulary for both sides of the question, such as “collaborate,” “shared goals,” and “motivate,” and check spelling and word forms. Vary repeated basic expressions with accurate topic-specific phrases.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 4.5

You attempt to connect several ideas in a longer sentence, and the basic meaning—that comparison can encourage effort and learning—can be understood. However, sentence control is uneven. For example, “At my opinion” does not form the intended grammatical expression, while “when you compare yourself with successful people and you have nothing or unsucess, so you can start…” combines clauses in a confusing structure. The phrase “focused your work” also lacks a consistent grammatical pattern, and “learn more thing” has an agreement error. Most of the response relies on one extended sentence rather than showing a controlled range. Practise writing clear simple sentences first, then add subordinate clauses and check verb forms, agreement, and punctuation.

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

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