Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-10-22

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)

Nowadays, many people believe that competition is a good thing at work, at school and in daily life. While others argue that we should cooperate with each other rather than compete in every task. From my perspectives, competition with each other provides benefits rather than cooperation.

Competition at work, at school and in daily life mativates people to do work effectively. It gives them a threshold to achieve their goals and performe well. Take an example, when a student compete with other students, they may study harder to achieve their goals and make a high position in class. At the same time, having competition at work with other employees has a benefit to improve their skills to earn promotion. Competition can encourage people to set some goals and work hard.

On the contrast, cooperation may improve communication and relationships. It will give them an opportunity to make trust in each other. For example, students can share knowledge woth each other to achieve their goals. In project , they can divide work and complete the tadk successfully. Workers can help each other to complete their project and improve the company's performance. Some works require a teamwork for the better results.

In conclusion, Competition may improve a person's skills, give them a motivation to achieve their goals and build trust in himself. While cooperation may create a supportive relationship and improve better communication. From my perspectives, people should compete in today's world where merit is already high. It will polish their abilities for achievements of their life.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You discuss both competition and cooperation, and your position—that competition offers greater benefits—is stated in the introduction and repeated in the conclusion. Relevant examples include students studying harder and colleagues sharing work on projects. However, the comparison is not fully developed: the benefits of cooperation are listed, but you do not explain when cooperation might be more effective or weigh the two approaches in enough detail. Your conclusion also introduces the idea that “merit is already high” without explaining it. The response is 238 words, so it does not meet the 250-word minimum; this limits the space available to develop and support your ideas. Add a fuller explanation of your reasoning and a specific example before concluding.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, separate paragraphs for competition and cooperation, and a conclusion. This makes the main points reasonably easy to locate. However, progression within paragraphs is sometimes repetitive, particularly in the competition paragraph, where several sentences repeat that competition helps people achieve goals or improve. Some linking is mechanical or inaccurate: “On the contrast” does not connect the ideas naturally, and the opening “While others argue…” is a fragment rather than a complete sentence. The conclusion also begins with “While” as a fragment. Use clear topic sentences, connect examples directly to the point they illustrate, and vary transitions so the argument develops rather than simply listing benefits.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use enough topic-related vocabulary to communicate the main ideas, including “competition,” “cooperate,” “promotion,” “communication,” and “supportive relationship.” However, the range is limited and several word-choice, collocation, and spelling errors make the writing less precise. For example, “mativates,” “performe,” “woth,” and “tadk” are misspelled, while “make a high position in class” and “make trust” are unnatural expressions. Repetition of “goals,” “improve,” and “achieve” also restricts variety. Build a small set of accurate collocations for discussing workplace and school outcomes, and check spelling carefully. More precise phrasing would make your examples clearer and help distinguish the effects of competition from those of cooperation.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt some longer structures, such as “when a student compete with other students, they may study harder,” and use simple sentences to present supporting points. However, control is inconsistent, and errors in sentence formation and agreement occur often enough to affect fluency. “While others argue that we should cooperate…” is a dependent clause presented as a sentence, and “In project, they can divide work” is missing grammatical elements. There are also agreement and article problems, as in “a student compete” and “a teamwork.” The conclusion contains another fragment beginning “While cooperation may create…”. Practise joining dependent clauses to complete sentences, checking subject–verb agreement, and using articles and plural forms accurately. This will make your argument easier to follow.

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