Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-09-27

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 is an important debate among individuals. It helps societies to grow in a productive way, but some people have argued and believe that cooperation outweigh competition. I strongly believe that competition at school, at work and in daily life is essential thing. This essay discusses both views before drawing a conclusion.

There are several factors regarding this problem. Firstly, the competition develops the ability of winning and competing each other, so people will work hard to get higher grades. For instance, students that are more competitive in classroom or at any work place can achieve their goals more efficiently, their results are rewarding because they are more diverted toward their future. To elaborate on this, the competition also encourages self-improvement and personal goal-setting, however, competition is a practical approach towards life.

In contrast, some people argued that cooperation is more significant factor than competition, because when people are cooperating with each other at any work place either school or in a social circle they will create a friendly environment this type of behavior have remained positive impact on society. For example, when students are trying to help each other in studies especially for weak students help them to avoid dispute and sense of being prioritize.

To conclude, although cooperation is contributing in the society in a positive way, competition is generally more practical that helps people to work progressively. I believe that competition brings many improvements in someone's attitude . In this way, a strategy is required to maintain a balance among competition and cooperation that will prove advantageous in the future.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

The response addresses all parts of the task by discussing both the view that competition is beneficial and the view that cooperation should be prioritised, while also stating a clear personal opinion. The position is maintained throughout the essay. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited and repetitive. For example, the arguments regarding competition focus heavily on getting higher grades and personal goal-setting without fully exploring broader societal implications. Similarly, the cooperative viewpoint mentions creating a friendly environment and helping weak students, but these points are underdeveloped. Because the ideas are presented without sufficient extension or deep analysis, the response aligns best with Band 6.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The essay presents a coherent overall arrangement with a clear introduction and conclusion, and the four-paragraph structure is logical. Cohesive devices are used throughout the text, such as 'Firstly', 'In contrast', and 'To conclude'. However, referencing and cohesion are occasionally faulty or mechanical. For instance, the transition 'however, competition is a practical approach towards life' disrupts the flow of the second paragraph, and the phrase 'this type of behavior have remained positive impact' shows awkward linking. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate different viewpoints, but the internal logical progression within the body paragraphs occasionally stalls due to clunky phrasing, placing the response solidly at Band 6.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, attempting some less common items such as 'productive', 'self-improvement', and 'advantageous'. However, there are noticeable inaccuracies in word choice, collocation, and word form. For instance, the student writes 'cooperation outweigh competition' instead of 'outweighs', uses 'diverted toward' when 'directed toward' or 'focused on' is intended, and constructs the phrase 'sense of being prioritize' incorrectly. Spelling is generally acceptable, but vocabulary limitations and occasional awkward phrasing prevent the score from reaching a higher band, making Band 6 appropriate.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, utilizing relative clauses and conditional structures. However, there are frequent grammatical errors throughout the response. Examples include subject-verb agreement issues ('cooperation outweigh', 'behavior have remained'), incorrect prepositions ('competing each other' instead of 'competing with each other'), and awkward article usage ('the competition' used generically). While these errors do not seriously impede overall communication, they occur consistently enough to prevent the grammar from reaching Band 6, resulting in a Band 5.5 score.

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