Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-10-28

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)

well i strongly believe healthy competition at work is needed,i am completely goal oriented person unless i an setting a goal for myself which i need to achieve in next 3-4 months i cannot work properly there are nany people who thinks in the same way i do.It helps us to work towards our goal without being hateful or nehative or belittling others,i also believe competition should be done with respect and mutual understanding like we cannot judge a cow by its skills of riding a car when we are considering competiting with someone we should focus on their strength not weaknesses,id they have any weaknesses we should help them to work on it

and learn from their strength rather them anyone feel bad about their disadvantages.

i have worked in coorporate long back now i own a health company and i have people working for me i guve them work on based on their strength never compare them that actually help me to create a beautiful team bonding withour habing any hate or disrespect towards each other.When i started my career long back i got to learn many ghings from my collegues they neber treated me as a competitor though we were,we worked together had fun and learned things together and whatever i learned in my early office days it stayed with me.Whateevr i am today is a reflection of my past.I am grateful to each and everyone who taught me without making me feel like i am not good enough

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.5

You give a clear personal preference for respectful competition and support it with relevant experience, including setting goals and managing a team according to employees’ strengths. However, the task asks you to discuss both competition and cooperation, and the response focuses mainly on your own approach to competition and cooperative workplace relationships. The opposing view—that cooperation should be prioritised over competition—is not explained as a distinct argument, and there is little comparison of the benefits or drawbacks of each. Your examples are relevant, but several points are asserted rather than developed. To strengthen the response, explain each view in turn, then state your position and show why it follows from the discussion.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.5

The response contains a recognisable progression from your personal view, to your experience as an employer, and then to lessons from your early career. These examples help the reader follow your general message. However, the ideas are presented in two very long, loosely connected blocks, with few clear paragraph breaks or signposts. Several points run together—for example, the comparison about judging a cow and the advice to focus on strengths—so the relationship between them is not always easy to track. The final reflection is relevant but does not clearly conclude the discussion of both sides. Organise the essay into distinct paragraphs for the two views and your opinion, and use linking phrases to make the progression explicit.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use some topic-relevant vocabulary, including “goal oriented,” “mutual understanding,” “strength,” “weaknesses,” and “team bonding.” These choices communicate your ideas about motivation and respectful working relationships, and there is some attempt to express nuanced points rather than relying only on basic terms. However, several phrases are imprecise or unnatural, such as “competition should be done with respect” and “work on based on their strength.” Spelling errors, including “coorporate,” “collegues,” and “neber,” also distract from the message. Aim for more accurate collocations and a more formal academic register; proofreading would help ensure that your intended vocabulary is clear and consistent.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt to connect ideas using longer sentence structures, including clauses beginning with “unless,” “when,” and “though.” This shows an effort to express relationships between ideas, and the overall meaning can generally be understood. However, many sentences are joined together without appropriate full stops or other punctuation, creating run-ons that make the structure difficult to follow. There are also recurring errors in sentence construction and verb forms, as in “there are many people who thinks” and “unless I an setting a goal.” Articles and prepositions are sometimes missing or incorrectly used. Practise writing shorter, complete sentences first, then combine them accurately with conjunctions and punctuation.

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

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