Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-10-09

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 is a common feature of many aspects of life. Many people argue that competition is essential for success, whereas other things that cooperation is better than competition. This essay will discuss both views before presenting why I believe that combined work is generally more beneficial than competing against one another.

On one hand, cooperation offers several advantages. Those who think that we should try combined work actually have a better view than the others. This is because it will reduce pressure on individuals. People feel less jealousy and less fear of being left behind. This will directly affect people’s performance and mental health. For example, if people work together, it will bring collective ideas to the table and allow them to share with each other and develop better solutions. Competition is good in certain things, such as in sports, digital games, and exhibitions. But in school and daily life, it will not give many benefits, as some think.

In contrast, some people argue that competition is better. Because some are very intelligent and some are not. So, this will benefit intelligent and hardworking individuals more. Combined work may affect one person and put all the pressure on an individual. For example, in a group of people doing a project together, the person who leads may end up doing more work.

In conclusion, support competition in some kinds of games. But in daily life, it can greatly affect health and the work environment. It will ruin the mental development of growing children and the overall well-being of employees in the workplace.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You address both sides of the discussion and state a preference for cooperation, especially in the introduction and the paragraph about reduced pressure and shared ideas. The examples of group projects and sports also relate to the topic. However, the position is not fully consistent: the introduction favours cooperation, while the conclusion mainly warns against competition and does not clearly restate the comparison or explain when cooperation is preferable. The case for competition is particularly brief, relying on the claim that it benefits intelligent and hardworking people, without explaining how this improves outcomes. Develop both views with clearer reasoning and make your own position explicit throughout.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure, with an introduction, separate paragraphs for the two views, and a conclusion. Connectors such as “On one hand,” “In contrast,” and “In conclusion” help signal the direction of the discussion. However, progression within paragraphs is sometimes unclear or repetitive. For instance, “Those who think that we should try combined work actually have a better view than the others” repeats your position rather than advancing the explanation, and the shift to sports and games interrupts the paragraph’s focus on cooperation. The conclusion also introduces claims about children and employees without developing them earlier. Use each paragraph to build one main point, and link examples directly to that point.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use enough topic-related vocabulary to communicate the main ideas, including “competition,” “cooperation,” “mental health,” “collective ideas,” and “overall well-being.” Some phrasing also shows an attempt to express more specific concepts, such as “left behind” and “work environment.” However, several word choices and collocations are awkward or imprecise, including “other things that cooperation is better,” “combined work,” and “bring collective ideas to the table.” Repetition of “competition,” “people,” and “better” also limits flexibility. Choose more natural expressions for collaboration and explain ideas with precise terms, such as shared responsibility or workplace morale. This would make the argument clearer and more fluent.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mixture of simple and more complex sentences, including a conditional example beginning “if people work together” and a relative clause in “the person who leads.” These structures help convey cause and example. However, sentence control is uneven, and some constructions are incomplete or faulty. “Because some are very intelligent and some are not” is a fragment, while “So, this will benefit…” continues the thought without a clear grammatical link. The opening also has a faulty clause in “whereas other things that cooperation is better.” Review sentence boundaries and practise joining reasons with complete clauses, for example, “Some argue that competition is better because it rewards…” More accurate punctuation and clause structure will improve clarity.

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