Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-08-29

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 6.0)

In the modern era, competition has increased among people whether in professional life or at academic level. People tend to compete with each other because of numerous factors while others believe that instead of competing against each other, people should try to collaborate more.

On the one hand, competition cultivates certain traits such as motivation, hardworking, perseverance and determination. These attributes help individuals to outperform their competitors for example, students take study seriously because they desire to get good grades and scholarships. In addition to, competition also encourages innovating thinking. All companies come up with upgrade and innovative products and services to sustain their position in the market and attract and retain more people. Even consumers get new and best goods and services.

On the other hand, cooperative environment promotes teamworking and brotherhood skills among people. Everyone in the team share common goal and combine their skill to achieve that target. Even, such cooperative behaviour reduces conflict by promoting mutual respect and understanding other perspectives as well. It also solves any complex problem within short time because everyone suggest their own ways and the best one is use to tackle unfavourable circumstances.

To recapitulate, in my opinion I think healthy competition is vital because it build strong resilience. People should try to learn dealing with failure because every people cannot get success. It prepares individuals to take decision by their own and do not rely on others. I am not saying that every time people should compete in some situations they should take mutual decision rather than competing against each other. This helps them to develop respect toward other views and increases productions.

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response6.0
Coherence and Cohesion6.0
Lexical Resource5.5
Grammatical Range and Accuracy5.5
Overall6.0

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

You have addressed all parts of the prompt by discussing both competition and cooperation and providing a personal opinion. Your position is clear throughout the essay. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited. For instance, while you mention that competition fosters 'motivation' and 'perseverance', these points could be further extended with more specific examples or deeper analysis. Similarly, the conclusion introduces new arguments about 'resilience' and 'failure' that were not fully explored in the body paragraphs. To reach a higher band, ensure that your main points are consistently supported with detailed explanations rather than just listing attributes.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay is logically organized with a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. You use cohesive devices such as 'On the one hand', 'In addition to', and 'To recapitulate' to guide the reader. However, some transitions feel slightly mechanical, and there are minor issues with referencing and flow. For example, 'Even, such cooperative behaviour' is slightly awkward, and the sentence structure in the final paragraph is a bit disjointed. Paragraphing is used appropriately, and there is a clear progression of ideas, but the internal cohesion within paragraphs could be improved by using a wider variety of linking words and ensuring smoother transitions between sentences.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'cultivates', 'attributes', 'sustain', and 'unfavourable circumstances'. However, there are some inaccuracies in word choice and collocation. For example, 'innovating thinking' should be 'innovative thinking', and 'upgrade and innovative products' is slightly unnatural. You also use 'productions' in the final sentence, which is not the correct term for the context of team efficiency. While your vocabulary is sufficient to convey your meaning clearly, you need to work on more precise collocations and avoid minor word-form errors to reach the next band level.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, which is a positive feature. However, there are frequent grammatical errors that occasionally distract the reader. Examples include 'hardworking' used as a noun instead of 'hard work', 'In addition to, competition' (incorrect preposition usage), 'everyone suggest' (subject-verb agreement error), and 'every people cannot get success' (incorrect quantifier usage). While these errors do not impede communication, they are persistent throughout the text. To improve, focus on subject-verb agreement, correct word forms, and the proper use of articles and prepositions.

See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.

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