Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-09-30

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)

It is widely argued that competition at work, school, and in daily life is a good thing, while others think that cooperation is more important than competing against one another. From my perspective, both are necessary to keep the environment productive and safe.

On the one hand, healthy competition motivates students to improve academic performance because they will work harder to reach their targets. Moreover, it encourages companies and employees to develop unique products that can be innovative and beneficial for public. For example, individuals will work efficiently and diligently in a competitive environment because it motivates them to beat their colleagues and create something innovative. Although rivalry boosts confidence and motivation, excessive competition can have a negative impacts on students as well as workers. The best illustration is that intense rivalry may develop anxiety and stress as people are always under pressure, which ultimately leads to poor performances.

On the other hand, cooperation plays a significant role in maintaing work and school surroundings. It also teaches people how to work and behave with their fellows. Furthermore, it promotes teamwork which allows people to help each other and deal with problems efficiently.

In my opinion, competition contributes a major role in today's ever changing era but cooperation is also mandatory to boost healthy rivalry among individuals.

In conclusion, competitive environment promotes hard work, courage, and innovation but intense competition can affect people's mental well-being. Therefore, both will work side by side to keep the workplaces and education institutions competitive and friendly.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

The response addresses all parts of the task by discussing both the view that competition is good and the view that cooperation should be prioritized, and it includes the writer's own position in the introduction and conclusion. Ideas are relevant, such as how competition motivates individuals to improve academic performance and foster innovative products, while cooperation teaches teamwork and problem-solving. However, some arguments are slightly repetitive or under-developed. For example, the point about workplace competition leading to stress is introduced ("intense rivalry may develop anxiety and stress") but could have been extended further. Overall, the writer successfully addresses the prompt with a clear position, aligning well with the Band 6 or 7 descriptors, ultimately earning a solid 6.5 for addressing the prompt adequately while maintaining a clear stance throughout.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The essay presents a clear overall arrangement with logical paragraphing, dividing the body paragraphs into the two opposing views followed by the writer's personal perspective. Cohesive devices are used to guide the reader through the text, such as "On the one hand," "Moreover," and "On the other hand." However, some cohesion is slightly mechanical or faulty, as seen in the concluding sentences where referencing or logical progression becomes a bit muddled ("Therefore, both will work side by side"). Paragraphing is generally appropriate, and the progression of ideas is discernible, although smoother transitions between sentences would elevate the response. This performance fits comfortably into Band 6.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully attempting less common items such as "productive," "diligently," "innovative," and "well-being." There are some noticeable lexical inaccuracies and awkward collocations, such as "maintaing work and school surroundings" (maintaining work and school environments) and "competition contributes a major role" (plays a major role). Spelling is generally accurate, though minor errors appear. The vocabulary is sufficient to convey the writer's meaning clearly without impeding communication, representing a standard Band 6 lexical performance.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The writer demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, incorporating relative clauses and conditional structures ("while others think that cooperation is more important," "because it motivates them to beat their colleagues"). There are several grammatical errors and awkward phrasings throughout the text, such as "a negative impacts" (instead of 'a negative impact') and "anxiety and stress as people are always under pressure, which ultimately leads to poor performances" (performances plural is awkward here). Punctuation is generally functional, and while errors do occur, they rarely impede communication. This reflects the characteristics of Band 6 grammar.

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

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