Band 7.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.0 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-08-05

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 7.0)

Competing and cooperating are two of the most important aspects of human nature. Among others, these two human traits have eventually led to the success of the human species. However, some people tend to favour one over another. Let us understand why.

To begin with, competing, when done in a healthy way, is the only way to push yourself further and gain true skills/insights into a particular field. Competition does not always have to be with others, you can always be your own benchmark. Comparing yourself to your past self just to map out your progress, is according to many researchers, the healthiest way to keep moving forward, without any feelings of jealousy and/or failure. However, some might say that competition with other individuals is essential and at times that can be true. Sometimes you merely need that hit of adrenaline to get you going over the long term, like when you win a race or a debate. However, this must be done in a friendly and encouraging way with utmost humility, so as not to hurt the ego of the one who lost.

On the contrary, others take the side of collaboration frequently citing the reference of the mighty ant colony or of the honey bees. These ideas are in turn also worth implementing in our lives because teams, organisations and even governmental bodies can not operate without a decent level of cooperation. Putting the long term aim and vision of the group before personal aims/motivations is one way of achieving cooperation over a large scale. However, this works best in theory rather than practice. That is why institutions usually choose people with the same long term goal rather than choosing random people and asking them to forgo their personal ambitions, but if achieved then indeed like the mighty ant colony this group easily gains its aims quickly and more efficiently as compared to people working alone.

In my opinion, a mix of both is required. A group must work together while cooperating to a degree to achieve their goals, while being in competition with others and to their past selves so they can improve year on year. However, like I mentioned earlier this must be done without the evils of jealousy and hatred.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The response addresses all parts of the prompt, discussing both competition and cooperation before providing a clear personal opinion. The ideas are relevant and generally well-developed. For instance, the distinction between competing with others versus competing with one's past self is a sophisticated point. However, the discussion on cooperation could be further strengthened by providing a more concrete, real-world example of how cooperation functions in a professional or academic setting, rather than relying solely on the analogy of an ant colony. The position is consistent throughout, and the conclusion effectively synthesizes the two viewpoints.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The essay is logically organized with a clear progression of ideas. Each paragraph has a central focus, and the transition between the two main body paragraphs is handled well with the phrase 'On the contrary'. Cohesive devices such as 'To begin with', 'However', and 'That is why' are used effectively to guide the reader. While the paragraphing is appropriate, the flow could be slightly improved by using more varied linking phrases to avoid a somewhat repetitive structure in the opening sentences of the paragraphs. Overall, the information is presented in a coherent manner.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.5

The vocabulary is generally appropriate and allows for a clear expression of ideas. There is an attempt to use less common items such as 'benchmark', 'humility', and 'forgo'. However, there are some minor issues with collocation and word choice, such as 'frequently citing the reference of' which is slightly wordy, and 'gains its aims' which would be more naturally expressed as 'achieves its goals'. Despite these minor inaccuracies, the range is sufficient to convey precise meaning, and the vocabulary is well-suited to the academic nature of the task.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 7.0

The essay demonstrates a good mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There is a high level of accuracy, with most sentences being error-free. The use of punctuation is generally correct, though there are occasional minor slips, such as the comma usage in '...to their past selves so they can improve year on year.' The grammatical control is strong, and the complexity of the structures used contributes to the overall clarity of the argument. The writing is fluent and does not contain any errors that impede communication.

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