Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-10-08

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)

Competition at work , school and in daily life or cooperate more than competing , some people argue that competing is good for children learning and entertainment but other thinks that this create racism , selflessness and make people aggressive after losing the competition. On the other hand, cooperation with each other create a team that can work together and solves all the problems in a better way because teamwork carries more minds , more ideas , more creativity and less chaces of mistake.

But their are many pons and cons of both opinions. First talk about competition. To live in this world you have to compete with others. if you dont compete you will not get the way of livings you are desiring for. For example , hundreds of people compete for a single job and the one with more skills , better communication and more competitive will be selected. But looking to the other side of being competitive is that it creats selfishness , aggression and habits like making fun of others who are less skillfull than you. For example you lose a competition in which you are more skillfull than others , you will become against the winner.

In case of cooperative with others , people start caring about each other and look after them in every matter. Abundant of people cooperate with each other. For example i work in nestle and there was a special bonus for those who cooperate with others in thier work because this habit helpful for company to detect more flawa in their system. But their is also a drawback that people usually start depending on you and didn't take responsibility of any task so this will be a drawback.

I conclude that both , being competitive or cooperative is important but in a positive manner , not to make anyone jealous.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You discuss both competition and cooperation and give a concluding view that both matter when practised positively. The job-selection example supports the value of competition, while the Nestlé bonus example illustrates cooperation, so the response is relevant to the prompt. However, several points are asserted rather than fully explained: for instance, the claim that competition creates “racism” is not developed, and the drawback of cooperation—people becoming dependent—is only briefly stated. Your position is clearest in the conclusion, but it could be expressed more directly in the introduction and maintained through the discussion. Develop each main point with a clearer explanation of its effects and a specific link back to the question.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable overall structure: an opening overview, a paragraph on competition, one on cooperation, and a conclusion. Examples are generally placed alongside the points they support, which helps readers follow the discussion. However, progression within paragraphs is sometimes difficult to track, and linking phrases such as “But their are many pons and cons” and “In case of cooperative with others” are either inaccurate or awkward. The opening sentence also combines several ideas without a clear sequence, while the conclusion is very brief. Use topic sentences to signal each paragraph’s main argument, then connect explanation and example more explicitly. Clearer referencing and more accurate transitions would make the organisation easier to follow.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use some relevant vocabulary for the topic, including “teamwork,” “skills,” “aggression,” “responsibility,” and “creativity.” These choices help communicate the main ideas, but the range is limited and several word-choice, collocation, and spelling errors make parts of the response difficult to interpret. Examples include “pon and cons,” “more competitive will be selected,” “flawa,” and “less skillfull.” Some expressions, such as “carries more minds,” do not convey the intended meaning naturally. Aim to learn topic-related collocations and check spelling and word forms carefully. More precise choices—for example, describing a candidate as “better qualified” rather than “more competitive”—would make your arguments clearer and more appropriate for an academic essay.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and longer sentences, including clauses with “because” and “who,” and the reader can usually identify your intended meaning. However, control is inconsistent: errors in sentence structure, verb forms, agreement, articles, and punctuation occur frequently and sometimes make relationships between ideas unclear. For example, “cooperation … create a team” has subject–verb disagreement, and “the one with more skills … will be selected” is embedded in a sentence whose structure is difficult to manage. There are also incomplete or poorly punctuated sentence openings, such as “if you dont compete.” Practise building accurate sentences first, then add subordinate clauses. Check agreement, tense, sentence boundaries, and capitalisation during revision.

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