Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-11-13

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 5.5)

Many individuals believe that to achieve something competition is important, while some think that cooperate is more important to maintain relationship. Further in essay i discuss both the views and give my opinion.

On the one hand, to become successful person competition is essential. For instance, to get a better position in any organisation, competition with colleagues needed, which improves their personal development. Also it helps to achieve better opportunities, eventually boost self confidence and if failed in area then employee became more targeted to work. In schools, competition between students help them to achieve better grades and develop skills like problem solving and gradually students start focusing on studies. So, competition develops analytical thinking and individuals stay vigilant about getting work done.

On the other hand, some argue that cooperate is more important rather than competing against each other. It helps a person to live in healthy environment. At workplace, a team is working on any projects, need dedication and different ideas from every individuals, so here cooperation must needed to get expected result. It also helps by not to argue with teammates or colleagues and maintaining healthy surroundings. In schools, through competition students start learning working together on different group projects, and value friendship without any disputes. Thus, through cooperation individuals stay healthy without any disputes.

In conclusion, competition is essential at work, and at school because its helps in individuals personal development and derives growth and personal development. I am of the opinion that cooperation brings greater benefits to society as a whole, because by encouraging and support each other at any place, and being together makes a person selfless and can contribute more to society.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You address both sides of the question and give a clear personal view: the body paragraphs explain benefits of competition and cooperation, and the conclusion states that cooperation brings greater benefits to society. Relevant examples from workplaces and schools help keep the discussion on topic. However, the two positions are not developed equally in depth. The competition paragraph lists outcomes such as better grades, confidence and analytical thinking, but does not explain in detail how competition produces them or when it may be harmful. The cooperation paragraph also makes broad claims about avoiding disputes and supporting society without a specific example. To strengthen the response, explain one or two key ideas more fully and connect your examples directly to your final preference.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a clear overall structure, with an introduction, separate paragraphs for the two views, and a conclusion. Signposts such as “On the one hand,” “On the other hand,” and “In conclusion” make the direction of the discussion easy to follow. Within paragraphs, however, ideas are sometimes joined mechanically with “Also” and “So,” and some links are unclear. For example, the sentence about students learning to work together through competition appears in the cooperation paragraph, so the relationship between the example and the point is confusing. The conclusion also repeats “personal development” and “disputes” rather than synthesising the discussion. Use clearer links between claims and examples, and organise each paragraph around a more distinct central point.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use a relevant range of vocabulary for the topic, including “personal development,” “problem solving,” “analytical thinking,” “cooperation,” and “contribute to society.” These choices communicate the main ideas, but several word combinations and forms are unnatural or imprecise, which limits the flexibility and control of the vocabulary. Examples include “achieve something competition,” “more targeted to work,” and “healthy surroundings”; the intended meanings are understandable but not expressed idiomatically. Repetition of “healthy,” “disputes,” and “personal development” also narrows the range. Build accuracy by learning common collocations in context and choosing precise alternatives, such as describing employees as “more focused on their work” rather than “more targeted to work.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more extended sentence forms, including clauses beginning with “while,” “which,” and “because.” The main message is generally understandable, but errors in sentence construction, agreement, articles and verb forms occur across the response. For example, “some think that cooperate is more important” needs a noun or gerund form, while “competition with colleagues needed” is missing a finite verb. In “a team is working on any projects, need dedication,” the subject and clause structure are incomplete; “its helps” also shows an agreement error. These issues sometimes make relationships between ideas harder to follow. Practise building complete sentences with clear subjects and verbs, then check articles, singular/plural agreement and verb forms during revision.

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