Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-08-09

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 5.5)

The competition is the thing that can make person more succesfull that can make person hungry, diverse and eager to get more achivements in his life but some of the people doesn't agree with that and they believe that we should ne more cooperative rather than competing against each other.

But as i said that competiton gives a person a challenge to go for that and to achieve that goals. without competition no one have enough will to get his goals every thing seems easy and that can also make person do to nothing and those who work hard and had hunger in their field can get the goals easily. so that's my opinion that competition in every place make participants more sharp or strong that he/she can fight for their achievements, however we also keep an eye that it can go through any controvery.Because in some times there will be controvery take place beacause we dont know how other person think, Some we should make the competition in every field fair for both sides.

On the other hand, the relevant example of that is that when i was at my metriculation level i study in just competition and my competition is with my class top tier students who are position holders so i do some more hardwork and i compete them in every thing in studies in activities that make me sense of strong problem solving skill and also make me sharp and the result of that is when i passed my matric from my school and when the result came i saw my name with the top tier students. So that's the story of mine how the low score student make himself a top tier high score student and its all caused by competition that give me strength, confidence, eager to achieve my goal.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses both sides of the argument and provides a clear personal opinion. However, the development of ideas is limited. While you mention the benefits of competition, the discussion on cooperation is largely absent, which is a requirement of the prompt. The personal example provided is relevant, but the overall analysis lacks depth and academic tone. To improve, ensure you dedicate a full paragraph to the opposing view (cooperation) and provide more balanced reasoning for both perspectives before concluding with your own stance.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is divided into paragraphs, but the logical flow is often disrupted by informal phrasing and repetitive sentence structures. Cohesive devices are used, such as 'however' and 'on the other hand,' but they are sometimes used incorrectly or in a way that feels mechanical. The transition between the general discussion and the personal example is abrupt. To improve, focus on using a wider variety of linking words and ensure that each paragraph has a clear topic sentence that guides the reader through your argument.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

The vocabulary is somewhat limited and repetitive. You frequently use basic terms like 'good thing,' 'get,' and 'make.' There are also several spelling errors, such as 'succesfull,' 'achivements,' 'ne,' and 'controvery.' While the meaning is generally clear, the lack of precision and the presence of spelling mistakes prevent the essay from reaching a higher band. You should aim to incorporate more academic collocations and precise terminology related to the topic of competition and cooperation to demonstrate a wider range.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The essay relies heavily on simple sentence structures, and there are frequent grammatical errors throughout the text. Issues include subject-verb agreement (e.g., 'some of the people doesn't agree'), incorrect verb tenses (e.g., 'i study in just competition'), and missing articles. Punctuation is also inconsistent, with run-on sentences and improper capitalization of 'i.' While the meaning is usually understandable, the high frequency of errors in basic grammar significantly impacts the quality of the writing. Focusing on sentence variety and proofreading for basic errors is essential.

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.