Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-08-23

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)

People have different opinions about whether competition or coordination is beneficial at workplace, at educational institutes and in everyday life. While many thinks that competition encourage people to improve and achieve their goals, others believe that collaborating is important for long term, especially when it comes to problem solving.

On the one hand, people argue that competing with each other in day-to- day life, at job and at school is advantageous because it motivates people to improve and to achieve better performance. For example, a student performs hard to secure scholarship. A healthy competition between two companies can motivate them to reduce the price which is good for consumers, or encourage them to innovate new products. For instance, a company introduce new product at less price to attract more consumers. Therefore, constructive competition can facilitate people to outperforms.

On the other hand, People believe that coordination is equally important because it improves peoples’ knowledge and teamwork. Sometimes, it is hard for people to achieve goals alone. Furthermore, teamwork helps people solve complex problems effectively. For instance, a group of students can complete their project while coordinating with each other, results into great achievement in project. Additionally, employer can raise bar of the company by cooperating with one another with good intention. Hence, effective collaboration can help people to overcome the obstacles productively.

In my opinion, competition and cooperation both are equally important as healthy competition can motivate people to work hard and achieve more and coordination can enhance the teamwork and knowledge. However, excessive competition can increase the stress and selfishness among people and heavily rely on team can reduce the ambition and accountability of individuals.

In conclusion, although it is true that competition can enhance personal development, collaboration can help solve complex problem and build successful communities. Therefore, I believe that person can progress to accomplish great while competing fairly and working together to achieve same goal.

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response7.0
Coherence and Cohesion7.0
Lexical Resource6.0
Grammatical Range and Accuracy6.0
Overall6.5

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0

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-supported with examples, such as the student's mention of scholarships and business innovation. However, some arguments are slightly under-developed; for instance, the point about employers raising the bar could be explained with more depth. The position is consistent throughout the essay, and the conclusion effectively synthesizes the two viewpoints. To reach a higher band, ensure that every point is fully explored with more nuanced reasoning rather than relying on brief examples.

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 'On the one hand,' 'On the other hand,' 'Furthermore,' and 'Therefore' are used to guide the reader through the argument. However, some transitions are slightly mechanical, and there are minor issues with referencing, such as 'results into great achievement in project,' which lacks a clear subject. Overall, the progression of ideas is clear, and the structure supports the reader's understanding of the argument.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, allowing the student to express ideas clearly. There is an attempt to use topic-specific vocabulary like 'constructive competition,' 'facilitate,' and 'accountability.' However, there are some inaccuracies in word choice and collocation, such as 'performs hard' (should be 'works hard') and 'heavily rely on team' (should be 'relying heavily on teams'). The range is sufficient to convey meaning, but more precise and sophisticated vocabulary would be needed to move into the higher bands. The errors do not impede communication.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The student uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are frequent grammatical errors, particularly with subject-verb agreement ('many thinks,' 'a company introduce') and article usage ('at job,' 'at educational institutes'). Punctuation is generally functional, but there are some awkward phrasings that affect the flow. While the student attempts complex structures, the control over them is inconsistent. To improve, focus on proofreading for basic grammatical slips and ensuring that complex sentences are constructed with greater accuracy.

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