Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-10-15

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 6.5)

In today's globalised world, success is crucial to every individual. Therefore,there is an ongoing debate on whether people should compete with each other rather than cooperation and team work to excel in future. Although competition is pivotal to select the best individuals in a certain field, I concur with the notion that team work plays an immense role in fostering creativity,innovation and practical skills.

Good competitors are the driving force behind bringing out the best in the people . This is primarily because challenging opportunities tend to enhance congnitive ability and substantially improves technical skills such as time and pressure management which are significantly important in a tangible world. Furthermore, extremely competitive environment helps higher authoraties to select the best individual at work, schools or even in competitive exams. For instance, MBBs test is quite intricate;therefore, a few number of students pass the exam among thousands of students who apply for the test.

Proponents in favor of the idea that cooperation is more important believe that it is paramount for creativity, innovation and producing novel ideas. This is mainly because when people cooperate more by discussing their thoughts and ideas with a close friend or peer, they might be able to help you out by giving a much more pragmatic approach to your thinking. Compartive to competitive environment, having discussion might be able to help alleviate or even solve the problems.

In a nutshell, while both viewpoints have their own merits, I firmly believe that cooperation is more important because it establishes a positive environment in work places, in addition to playing a salient role in increased productivity and better results in schools and in daily life.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

You address both sides of the discussion and state a clear preference for cooperation, particularly in the introduction and conclusion. The points about competition developing skills and helping employers or schools identify strong candidates are relevant, and the exam example gives one concrete illustration. The cooperation paragraph also explains how discussion can lead to more practical solutions. However, the two views are not developed equally: the benefits of cooperation remain fairly general, and the example about a friend or peer is not extended into a specific situation. To strengthen the response, explain how cooperation improves outcomes in a workplace, school project, or everyday problem, and make the comparison between the two approaches more explicit. This would build on the clear position and relevant ideas already present.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.0

The response has a clear overall structure: an introduction, separate paragraphs for the two views, and a conclusion that restates your position. The progression from competition to cooperation is easy to follow, and signposting such as “Furthermore,” “For instance,” and “In a nutshell” helps readers recognise the stages of the argument. Some links are less smooth or precise, however. For example, “This is mainly because” introduces a broad explanation in the cooperation paragraph, while “Compartive to competitive environment” does not form a clear transition. The reference to “you” after discussing people also shifts perspective and makes the connection less consistent. Use transitions that directly compare the ideas, and ensure pronouns clearly refer to the people or concepts already mentioned.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.5

You use a reasonably varied vocabulary for the topic, including “cognitive ability,” “pragmatic approach,” “alleviate,” and “productivity.” These choices show an attempt to use less common language and generally communicate the intended meaning. Some word choices and collocations are inaccurate or unnatural, though, such as “tangible world,” “higher authorities” for people selecting candidates, and “a few number of students.” There are also spelling errors, including “congnitive,” “Compartive,” and “authoraties,” which reduce precision. Aim for natural combinations as well as ambitious vocabulary: for example, describe a “competitive environment,” say that organisations “identify the strongest candidates,” and refer to “a small number of students.” Proofreading would help preserve the range you are attempting.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.5

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, including subordinate clauses beginning “Although” and “because,” and most of the argument remains understandable. Some grammatical errors persist, particularly with agreement and sentence construction. In “challenging opportunities tend to enhance cognitive ability and substantially improves technical skills,” the subject requires “improve,” not “improves.” The phrase “when people cooperate … they might be able to help you out” shifts from “people” to “you,” creating an inconsistent construction. Punctuation and spacing also need attention, as in “Therefore,there” and “intricate;therefore.” Continue using complex sentences, but check subject–verb agreement, maintain consistent pronouns, and separate clauses with appropriate punctuation.

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

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.