Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-10-12

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 5.0)

It is a controversial issue that competition at work, at school, and in daily life is a good thing while others believe that we should try to cooperate more, rather than competing against each other.

I agree with the statement that there should be competition at every place of work because it will encourages people to give their best at work.

On the one hand, people who are in favor of statement think that people work better in pressure of competition, so we can evaluate their performance. In school students have to compete to show their performance in comparison with other students. At work people compete to impress their manager, to get promotions and bonuses. In daily life competing includes personal choices in life for instance, a choice of girls to choose their partner by comparing with their preference, competition help them in selecting perfect partner.

On the other hand, people believe that we should cooperate instead of competition, support by following reason they believe that it will lead a feeling of disrespect among the peoples of society, However, people not behave well with other competitors due to greed of win. They also illuminates the issue that competition is not valid because god made every one unique, so we should not compete. They also support argument by giving example that people become enemy of their friend or competitor's success.

In conclusion we can say that competition have various kinds of benefits in the life but also faces severe issues that can be countered by proper strategies.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

You address both views and state a preference for competition, with relevant examples from school and work. However, your position is not fully sustained: the conclusion says competition has benefits but also “severe issues” without clarifying how you weigh these against each other. Several points are brief or unclear, especially the example about choosing a partner, and the cooperation paragraph lists possible harms without explaining them in depth. The response also contains 227 words, so it is 23 words below the 250-word minimum; the 29 words copied from the task prompt are not counted. Develop each main idea with a clear explanation or example, and make your final opinion explicit.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

The response has an introduction, separate paragraphs for the two views, and a conclusion, so the reader can identify its basic organisation. The signposts “On the one hand” and “On the other hand” help distinguish the arguments. However, progression within paragraphs is limited: several points are placed together without showing how they connect, and the conclusion does not clearly resolve the discussion. Some linking is awkward or inaccurate, as in “support by following reason they believe,” while repeated references to “people” and “competition” make the writing feel repetitive. Use clearer topic sentences, connect each example directly to its claim, and use referencing and transitions more precisely to create a continuous line of argument.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use some task-relevant vocabulary, including “performance,” “promotions,” “bonuses,” “cooperate,” and “competitors,” which allows you to discuss both sides of the issue. However, the range is limited and several word choices or collocations are inaccurate, sometimes making ideas difficult to interpret. For example, “work better in pressure of competition,” “a feeling of disrespect,” and “greed of win” do not express the intended meanings naturally. The phrase about “selecting perfect partner” is also unclear in this context. Build a wider set of precise expressions for describing motivation, teamwork, and negative effects, and check that words combine naturally. The suggestions below offer more suitable alternatives for some of your phrasing.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and complex sentences, including clauses introduced by “because,” “while,” and “that.” However, the range is limited, and errors occur frequently enough to make some sentences difficult to follow. Examples include “it will encourages” (incorrect verb form), “competition help” (subject–verb agreement), and “people not behave well” (missing auxiliary). There are also problems with articles, plurals, and sentence boundaries, such as “every one unique” and the comma splice in “In conclusion we can say that competition have various kinds of benefits … but also faces severe issues.” Practise accurate agreement and auxiliary use, and divide long or joined ideas into complete sentences with appropriate punctuation.

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

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