Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-09-28

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 has become popular at school and at work. Many arguments claim that competition while study and work in daily life is a positive thing. While others believe that cooperate is good option instead of competing against each other. This essay will discuss both perspectives and provide a reasoned and opinion. I believe that cooperate is a good option because there are benefits for individuals.

On one hand, competition while study and work has benefits for students, employe and company. It gives motivation for them to become the winner and get reward like book and money. For example, in car company when one of the worker reached the target because selling more than two car in one day. She will received big bonus from the company. As a result both of them proud of them self and the company happy because received huge income.

On the other hand, cooperation is one of the most significant ways to achieve goals and build positive relationships in schools and workplaces. It helps groups of workers listen to each other, share their opinions, and respect one another. For instance, students who work in groups can share their ideas and opinions. Not only does cooperation make tasks easier, but it also helps students complete them more quickly. Furthermore, they can gain more knowledge from each other and achieve better results.

In conclusion, there are convincing arguments both for and against competition. However, I favour the latter view because cooperation can lead to better results and stronger relationships among people.

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response6.0
Coherence and Cohesion6.0
Lexical Resource5.5
Grammatical Range and Accuracy5.0
Overall5.5

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

The response addresses both parts of the prompt regarding competition and cooperation, and states a clear personal position in the introduction and conclusion. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited and repetitive. For example, in the second body paragraph, the example of a car salesman receiving a bonus is a bit simplistic and over-generalized. The essay does touch upon the main requirements, but the extension of ideas remains basic, which aligns best with Band 6.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The essay has a clear overall arrangement with a recognizable introduction, two body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate distinct views. Cohesive devices are employed, such as 'On one hand', 'On the other hand', and 'In conclusion'. However, referencing and transitions are at times mechanical or faulty, as seen in phrases like 'While others believe that cooperate is good option'. Logical progression is generally maintained, placing this performance at Band 6.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The vocabulary used is adequate for the task, with some attempts at less common items such as 'significant', 'perspectives', and 'convincing arguments'. However, there are frequent word-form errors, such as using 'cooperate' instead of 'cooperation' ('believe that cooperate is good option') and 'while study and work' instead of 'while studying and working'. These errors occasionally distract the reader, though they do not seriously impede communication, placing the Lexical Resource firmly at Band 5.5.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, successfully producing some complex structures such as 'students who work in groups can share their ideas and opinions' and 'Not only does cooperation make tasks easier, but it also helps students complete them more quickly.' However, there are frequent grammatical errors throughout the text, including missing articles ('in car company'), incorrect verb forms ('She will received'), and subject-verb agreement issues ('the company happy'). These errors restrict the score to Band 5.0.

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