Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-10-26

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)

it is often argued that whether poeple should compete against one another work, school or daily life or if they should focus more on cooperation. although healthy competition can motivate individuals to work harder, I believe that teamwork is far more important for long-term success.

On the other hand, competition can push people to achieve their best. As healthy competition can grow self confidence which will on the other hand boost the proportion of success in an individual, Which can lead to achieving remarkable achievement. For instance, in academic setting, The person that works hard, got the reward at the end it can be in the form of a trophy or a cash reward for the hard work and dedication.

On the contrary, I believe that cooperation brings far greater benefits. When people work together as a team, they can help each other, which leads to lower stress, reduced anxiety, and better overall growth. For example, in modern workplaces, environments are set up in a way that allows employees from different departments to collaborate on complex projects, resulting in faster and more effective solutions than anyone could achieve alone.

In conclusion, while competition can push individuals to achieve personal excellence, I firmly believe that cooperation is far more important. Working together creates a supportive environment that leads to greater long-term success for both individuals and society.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You address both sides of the discussion and state a clear opinion: competition can motivate people, but cooperation matters more for long-term success. The examples about academic rewards and workplace collaboration are relevant. However, the competition argument is not fully explained, and the academic example is vague about how competition leads to achievement. The cooperation point is more developed, but the response would be stronger with a specific illustration and fuller discussion of cooperation in school or daily life. The response also falls 24 words short of the required minimum, limiting the space available to develop and support your ideas. Add explanation and a concrete example for each view.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a clear overall structure: an introduction, one paragraph for each view, and a conclusion that restates your position. The progression from competition to cooperation is easy to follow, and examples are placed with the relevant arguments. However, some linking is mechanical or imprecise. “On the other hand” and “On the contrary” signal contrast, but the latter is not the most natural transition here; a direct transition such as “By contrast” would be clearer. The sentence beginning “As healthy competition…” is also difficult to follow because several ideas are joined without clear relationships. Use cohesive devices more selectively and make the links between claims and examples explicit.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant vocabulary for the topic, including “healthy competition,” “self confidence,” “collaborate,” and “complex projects.” These choices help communicate the main ideas, and the workplace example includes some appropriate topic-specific language. However, the range is limited and several expressions are awkward or repetitive, such as “proportion of success,” “remarkable achievement,” and “the reward at the end.” There are also spelling and word-form issues, including “poeple” and “self confidence.” Aim for more precise collocations and vary repeated words such as “success” and “work.” For example, describe competition as improving performance or encouraging people to meet challenging goals.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and complex sentence forms, including a concession in the introduction (“although healthy competition can motivate…”) and a relative clause in the workplace example. The main message remains understandable. However, some sentence structures are faulty or incomplete. In “As healthy competition can grow self confidence…,” the opening clause is not properly connected to the main clause, and “Which can lead…” is a fragment. Capitalisation is inconsistent, as in “Which” and “The person,” and the sentence about the academic reward shifts awkwardly between “person,” “works,” and “got.” Use complete sentences, keep verb forms consistent, and check punctuation and capital letters. These changes would make your complex ideas easier to read.

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.