Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · 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 6.0)

Some individuals argue that competion at work places and educational institutions is beneficial. While others think that it is better to cooperate with each other than competing. In my opinion, cooperation can make work or study easier for students and workers but competion is necessary for growth in every field of life.

The most compelling reason put forward by the proponents of competion is that without competition it is impossible to grow. The race of getting better than others plays a vital role in the progress of anything, whether it be in studies for students or at work places for employees. For instance, if businesses start to cooperate with each other than competing, the progress will not increase. Different businesses apply new strategies daily to get better than their competitors. This competiton attracts more and more customers and in the process customer gets the best price and service.

Critics of competition argue that competition makes the environment unpleasent at work places and eduactional instituions. Working or studying becomes more stressfull for students and employees as they start to see each other as their opponents . Due to this, people sometimes keep grudges for others and competition turns into hatred in some cases. Due to lack of cooperation sometimes students and workers have to suffer more. Things which can be done easily by cooperation become more complicated.

In Conclusion, cooperation can make people's life easier but for progress it is necessary to compete with others. Competition may have some drawbacks but it is only ultimate option for getting better.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You discuss both perspectives and state a clear position: cooperation can make work and study easier, while competition is necessary for progress. The business example supports the competition argument by explaining how firms’ efforts to attract customers can improve prices and service. You also identify possible harms, including stress, grudges and hostility, so the response remains relevant to the full task. However, the cooperation side is less fully developed: the claim that cooperation makes tasks easier is not illustrated with a specific example or explained in much detail. The conclusion repeats your position but does not add much synthesis. Develop both sides more evenly and explain the conditions under which competition or cooperation is most beneficial.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a clear overall structure: an introduction, separate paragraphs for the two views, and a conclusion. The progression from the benefits of competition to its drawbacks is easy to follow, and phrases such as “For instance” help introduce supporting detail. However, some linking is mechanical or repetitive, particularly the repeated use of “Due to” in the cooperation paragraph and “competition” across several sentences. The opening “While others think…” is also a sentence fragment rather than a smoothly connected contrast. Improve cohesion by varying transitions and using clearer references between ideas; for example, explain how the stress described leads to reduced cooperation rather than moving directly to grudges and complications.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use a relevant range of vocabulary, including “proponents,” “progress,” “strategies,” “opponents,” and “drawbacks,” which helps express both sides of the issue. Some phrases are also appropriate to the topic, such as “attracts more and more customers.” However, spelling errors and imprecise or unnatural collocations are noticeable, including “competion,” “unpleasent,” “eduactional instituions,” and “ultimate option.” “The race of getting better than others” is understandable but not idiomatic, and “the progress will not increase” is vague. Aim for more precise academic phrasing and proofread spelling carefully. Using accurate collocations would make your argument sound more natural and help you express cause and effect with greater precision.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and complex structures, including conditional clauses such as “if businesses start to cooperate…” and subordinate clauses beginning “whether it be…” and “as they start to see…”. Most sentences communicate their meaning clearly, and the overall argument is easy to understand. Some grammatical errors remain. The opening “While others think…” is a dependent clause presented as a complete sentence; connect it to the preceding sentence. In “than competing,” use a parallel form such as “rather than compete.” There are also issues with articles and number, for example “customer gets” where a plural form is needed, and punctuation spacing before the full stop after “opponents.” Review sentence boundaries and parallel constructions to improve accuracy.

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