Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-09-11

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)

There are several reasons to believe that competition in life is a positive thing, there also prevails the opposite belief of cooperation is more fruitful than competing against each other in any stage of life. This essay will evaluate both views before ending at an opinion of why competition should be seen as a effective meaning of marching forward.

On the one hand, in today's life, competition is everywhere, starting from primary institutions till the last days of life. during schooling, students compete with each other to get a better grade and more attention to the teachers and to attain certain advantage from the parents about their improvements. Competition makes a student being more serious about advance to a more step than others. This enlightens their mental ability, critical analysis and required skills to incorporate in their upbringing to their studies. After finishing studies when a student enters into job life, that competitive mindset fosters himself to adapt quickly and learn a little bit faster and catch the momentum. This surely will increase their abilities to deliver more work and think out of the box. Competitive mindset also assists a person to evaluate a daily situation from different perspective before choosing a particular decision. This helps one to cope up in daily life and have a better and comfortable life which leads to mental and emotional happiness.

On the other hand, pursuing only competitive mindset allows a person to become arrogant, over-confident and eccentric. This sometimes does not match while dealing with complex situations in different stages of life. Being a human, in certain perspectives, we need sympathy and cooperation to move forward. This helps a person to grow confidently, be a little bit more sensitive towards others and come forward in a time of need. It also increases social connectivity and to acquire emotional intelligence.

In my opinion, while cooperation is more important in connecting with other persons from social perspectives, competition is inevitable for ensuring growth in work and personal life and career. However, to ensure a more balanced life, one should have a competitive mindset and be a little more cooperative towards his colleagues and members associated with his life.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The essay addresses all parts of the prompt, discussing both competition and cooperation before providing a clear personal opinion. The ideas are relevant and generally well-developed, particularly in the body paragraphs. However, the response could be improved by providing more specific, concrete examples rather than relying on general statements about 'schooling' or 'job life'. The position is consistent throughout, and the conclusion effectively synthesizes the two viewpoints. To reach a higher band, ensure that the arguments are supported with more depth and specific real-world illustrations to avoid over-generalization.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

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', and 'In my opinion' are used to guide the reader through the argument. However, some transitions are slightly mechanical, and there are minor issues with referencing and flow, such as the awkward phrasing in the opening sentence: 'there also prevails the opposite belief of cooperation is more fruitful'. 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 ideas clearly. There is an attempt to use less common vocabulary, such as 'fruitful', 'eccentric', and 'momentum'. However, there are some inaccuracies in word choice and collocation, such as 'effective meaning of marching forward' (instead of 'effective means') and 'cope up' (which should be 'cope'). While these errors do not impede communication, they indicate a need for more precise control over word choice to reach a higher band level.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the writer attempts complex sentences, there are frequent grammatical errors, particularly with article usage, prepositions, and verb forms (e.g., 'attention to the teachers' instead of 'attention from', 'advance to a more step', and 'fosters himself to adapt'). Punctuation is generally functional, but there are some run-on sentences and comma splices in the introduction. The errors are noticeable but do not prevent the reader from understanding the main points. More attention to subject-verb agreement and prepositional accuracy is needed.

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