Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-08-17
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 6.5)
Some individuals believe that competition at work, at school and in daily life is a good thing, while others argue that we should try to cooperate more, rather than competing against each other. Although competition at work can improve people's mindset and strengthen their leading skills, I personally agree with the latter view, since cooperation can build teamwork and motivation among the workers.
The main reason why competition at work is a beneficial thing is that it encourages people to build leadership skills and improve the way they think. When competing at work to get that one big promotion, people start to work under high pressure with this they can improve the way they think because it causes them to always be alert as well as improve their leading skills when competing by giving presentations. For instance, the manager informs his employees about a big role, but he tells them that they have to work hard for it and only have a certain time span, with this type of pressure workers start panicking and work hard. As a result, employees build leading skills and a strong mindset.
On the other hand, cooperation can be advantageous because it encourages employees to improve their teamwork and motivation. When employees start working and communicating with each other, they start building teamwork and be motivated to work. For example, when a boss assigns employees into groups of four, to build a big project, employees will start brainstorming with each other and combine different ideas as well as be very excited to work together. As a result, employees will develop teamwork and foster motivation.
In conclusion, although competition develops leaderships and build a strong mindset among its workers, I personally believe that cooperation is more effective since it develops teamwork and motivation among its employees.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 6.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 7.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 6.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 6.0 |
| Overall | 6.5 |
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, though the development is somewhat repetitive. For instance, the argument for competition focuses heavily on 'leadership skills' and 'mindset' without exploring broader societal or educational contexts mentioned in the prompt. Similarly, the cooperation paragraph relies on a single example of a group project. To reach a higher band, you should aim to extend your ideas with more nuanced analysis rather than repeating the same points in slightly different ways. However, the position is consistent throughout the essay.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0
The essay is logically organized with a clear introduction, two body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate the two opposing views. Cohesive devices such as 'The main reason', 'On the other hand', and 'As a result' are used to guide the reader. However, the connection between sentences is sometimes mechanical, and the use of referencing could be more sophisticated. For example, the phrase 'with this they can improve' is slightly awkward and impacts the flow. Overall, the progression of ideas is clear, and the structure supports the argument effectively.
Lexical Resource — Band 6.0
The range of vocabulary is adequate for the task, allowing for clear communication of ideas. You use some topic-specific terms like 'promotion', 'brainstorming', and 'foster motivation'. However, the vocabulary is somewhat limited and repetitive; for example, the word 'employees' is used frequently, and 'leading skills' is used multiple times where 'leadership' or 'management capabilities' would be more precise. There are no significant spelling errors, but the lexical range lacks the flexibility and precision required for higher bands. Incorporating more varied synonyms and collocations would improve this score.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0
The essay demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the grammar is generally accurate and does not impede communication, there are some persistent errors. For instance, 'develops leaderships' (should be 'leadership') and 'build a strong mindset among its workers' (the pronoun 'its' is used to refer to 'people' or 'employees', which is grammatically incorrect). Additionally, some sentences are slightly clunky, such as 'with this type of pressure workers start panicking and work hard.' Increasing the variety of complex structures and ensuring subject-verb agreement would help elevate the score.
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.