Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-09-16
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)
Nowadays, competition plays a crucial role in students life. In this regards, it is believed by some people, competition at work, at school and in daily life is a good thing,whereas others think that we should try to cooperate more, rather than competiting against each other. This essay will outline not only both views but also my opinion which is in favour of formar viewpoint in forthcoming paragraphs with logical conclusion.
On the one side, competitions is important for everyone in work and education. The first and foremost is that it increase their level of performance. To clarify it more, people can give more attention on their study and work also and achieve their goal easily. For example, nowadays, there is to much competitions among medical students for NEET exam and students do a lot of studies to gain good marks in exam. Beside this , competition is important in work also because employees can get promotion easily and there is also increement in their salaries also.
On the other hand, sometimes people want to cooperate with each other instead of competition. The prime one is that when people focusing to much on competitions, they might be gone under depression and stress. Moreover, when people cannot achieve their prospective goal by doing competitions with others at that time people can take wrong decision in their life.
In conclusion,although there are sveral benefits of latter viewpoint. According to me, I think that it would be more beneficial if they give more attention, do more competitions to achirivr goal cannot be neglected.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The response addresses all parts of the prompt by discussing both the benefits of competition and cooperation, and the writer provides a clear, albeit somewhat convoluted, personal opinion. Ideas are presented, but they tend to be under-developed and lack extended support. For instance, the example of the NEET exam in India is relevant, but it is stated rather briefly without deep exploration of its broader implications on education and daily life. Similarly, the points regarding depression and stress in the counter-argument lack detailed elaboration. The overall progression of the argument is slightly hindered by repetitive phrasing and minor structural confusion in the introduction and conclusion, such as referring to 'formar viewpoint' rather than clearly naming the side chosen. Consequently, the task response aligns best with a Band 5.5 to 6.0 descriptor, earning a solid Band 6.0 for addressing all task requirements adequately.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The essay is arranged into four paragraphs, demonstrating an overall logical structure with an introduction, two body paragraphs, and a conclusion. However, cohesion at the sentence level is frequently mechanical and sometimes faulty. Transitional phrases like 'The first and foremost is that' and 'The prime one is that' are grammatically awkward and unnatural. Referencing is occasionally unclear, as seen in the concluding sentence where pronouns and modifiers blur the intended meaning ('if they give more attention, do more competitions to achirivr goal cannot be neglected'). Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate different perspectives, but internal cohesion lacks flexibility, pulling the score into the Band 5.5 range, rounded to a stable Band 5.5.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The vocabulary used is adequate for the task, allowing the student to communicate basic ideas about work, study, and stress. However, there are frequent word-choice and collocation errors, such as 'increement in their salaries', 'gone under depression', and typos like 'achirivr' and 'sveral'. The student attempts some less common vocabulary items (e.g., 'crucial role', 'promotion', 'prospective goal'), but these are often marred by spelling mistakes or inaccurate usage. While the vocabulary is sufficient to convey meaning without severely impeding the reader, the density of errors and lack of sophisticated phrasing prevent the response from achieving a Band 6.0. Therefore, a Band 5.5 is appropriate for lexical resource.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but control over grammar and punctuation is inconsistent. There are numerous grammatical errors throughout the text, including subject-verb agreement issues ('competition plays... is', 'it increase their level'), missing articles ('in students life', 'in work also'), and preposition errors ('focusing to much on'). Complex sentences are frequently faulty, leading to convoluted expressions like 'This essay will outline not only both views but also my opinion which is in favour of formar viewpoint in forthcoming paragraphs with logical conclusion.' These errors cause occasional difficulty for the reader and demonstrate a lack of reliable accuracy in complex structures, placing this criterion firmly at Band 5.0.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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