Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-09-23

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 6.0)

Competition among people has increased considerably over the last few year. Some people believe that competiton at job, at studies and in daily life is a nice thing to have. While others argue that everyone should cooperate with each other without having any competition.

On one side, individuals think that having competition among people has merits. This is because, competing against others help you reach your full potential. For example, when a person is competing with your class fellows at school or colleagues at work he tries to give his absolute best to perform better in order to get a good grade in his class or get a promotion at his job. This ultimatly benefit both the person involved and the institute or the company. Therefore, competition results in individuals unlocking their total capacity.

On the other hand, people argue cooperation among people is better than competing against each other. The reason is that, competition adds an extra pressure on the individual instead helping others and succeeding together creates a friendly atmosphere for everyone. For instance, if a student is not performing well in his studies the competition will affect him the most in the form of peer pressure and stress. While if every student studies without any competition, cooperation will be beneficial for the ones who struggle with their studies, as they can seek assistance from the better performing students. This will result in almost every student accomplishing well in his academics.

In conclusion, there are several benefits of both having competition or cooperation among each other. Competition make you unlock your entire potential and cooperation can lead to less stress among low performing individuals. I personally believe that having competiton is a good thing because a healthy competition forces you be a better version of yourself by making you improve your overall skill-set.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

The response addresses all parts of the prompt by discussing both the views that competition is positive and that cooperation is preferable, and clearly states the writer's own opinion in the conclusion. Main ideas are extended and supported with relevant examples, such as competing for promotions at work and seeking assistance for academic struggles. However, there is a tendency to over-generalise slightly in places, and some arguments could be explored in greater depth to reach higher bands. Overall, the position is clear throughout, and the task requirements are thoroughly fulfilled, aligning well with the Band 7 descriptor.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The essay presents a clear logical organisation and progression throughout. It follows a traditional four-paragraph structure with an introduction, two body paragraphs exploring opposing views, and a conclusion. Cohesive devices are used reasonably well, such as 'On one side', 'On the other hand', and 'In conclusion'. However, there are some minor mechanical links or referencing errors, such as pronoun shifts ('a person... competing with your class fellows... he tries... his absolute best'), which occasionally disrupt the flow. Paragraphing is used appropriately, but overall cohesion sits firmly at a Band 6.5 to 7 level.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully attempting less common items such as 'ultimately', 'peer pressure', and 'skill-set'. However, there are notable word choice and collocation errors, such as writing 'competiton at job, at studies' instead of 'competition at work, in studies', and 'accomplishing well' instead of 'performing well'. Spelling errors also occur, such as 'competiton' and 'ultimatly'. While communication is never impeded, these inaccuracies and limited flexibility prevent the response from achieving a Band 7.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

The writer uses a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, incorporating conditional structures and relative clauses. There are frequent error-free sentences, particularly in the simpler structures. However, a number of grammatical and punctuation errors persist throughout the text, such as subject-verb agreement issues ('competition make you unlock', 'competing against others help you') and missing articles or prepositions ('adds an extra pressure'). Despite these errors, they rarely impede communication, allowing the essay to secure a solid Band 6.

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

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.