Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-09-04

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)

It is frequently argued whether having competition in daily life is a good thing or people should cooperate more with each other. While cooperation is a good thing, competition guarantees personal growth. Iam strongly in favour of having competition in your day to day work.

Firstly, cooperation is the way of team work. Cooperation helps teams to work together in an efficient manner. It allows people to ignore little things for the sake of big purposes, which is a good thing. For example, if a person creating issues in an office meeting with his team just for the competition, he will definetely ruin the work culture and trust of his team members on him. So, cooperation is a good thing, but make sure you stand your ground when there is a need.

Furthermore, although sense of competition often seen as a bad thing, it guarantees personal growth. If a person has a sense of competition with others, he should use it wisely to make himself better rather than destroying himself with the thought of inferior to others. Being competitive, allows people to work hard and achieve appreciation. For example, if a person sees another person as his competition, he will work hard in his field to out grow the other, and it is a good thing for his career as well as for his mental peace.

In conclusion, being competitive or cooperative totally depends on the needs of the situation, as I clearly mention where each one is needed in above paragraphs. Iam strongly in favour of being competitive in your daily life it makes people to respect you.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses both sides of the argument and provides a clear personal opinion. The ideas are relevant, though the development is somewhat basic. For instance, the discussion on cooperation focuses on team dynamics, while the competition section touches on personal growth. However, the arguments could be extended further with more specific examples or deeper analysis to reach a higher band. The position is consistent throughout the essay, and the conclusion effectively summarizes the writer's stance. To improve, ensure that the supporting points are more thoroughly explored rather than just stated.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, each with a clear central topic. Cohesive devices such as 'Firstly', 'Furthermore', and 'In conclusion' are used to guide the reader through the argument. However, some transitions feel slightly mechanical, and the referencing within sentences could be smoother. For example, the phrase 'as I clearly mention where each one is needed in above paragraphs' is a bit clunky and could be replaced with a more sophisticated reference to the previous discussion. Overall, the progression of ideas is clear and easy to follow.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, allowing the writer to express their ideas clearly. There are some attempts at using less common vocabulary, such as 'out grow' and 'ruin the work culture', but there are also instances of slightly unnatural phrasing, such as 'thought of inferior to others'. Spelling is mostly accurate, but there are minor issues like 'definately' (misspelled as 'definetely') and spacing errors like 'Iam'. To reach a higher band, the writer should focus on more precise collocations and a wider range of academic vocabulary.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are several grammatical errors, such as 'although sense of competition often seen as a bad thing' (missing 'is') and 'Being competitive, allows people' (incorrect comma usage). Additionally, there are minor punctuation and spacing errors throughout the text. While these errors do not impede communication, they occur frequently enough to prevent a higher score. Increasing the variety of complex structures and proofreading for subject-verb agreement would be beneficial.

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