Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-10-30

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)

In contemporary society, the question of competition in daily life has spark considerable debate among the individuals. while some people belive that challenges at work, at study and in daily life is best, others argue that we should try to cooperate more, rather thant competing against each other. this essay will discuss both views and provide arguement that why I am in the favour of competition in the society.

On the one hand, some people belive that cooperation is more beneficial than competition. this is mainly because cooperatin help to achive group goals and other things which is not possible to achive by individuals. the main reason is that the team work has more power as compare to indivisualism. For instance, if the team in a company not work with cooperation their efforts were spread in different directions the orgainsation goals will not be achivable. Therefore, they will not get sucess individually but as a team, but this argument is not important.

On the other hand, many people think that competition at work, at scool and in daily life is necessary. The main reason is that when we grew in competitive environment, we automatically try or best and the superior results came out. For example, if children are not put in competitive environment thir abilites will not grew and they will struggle in near future. As a result the children get advantages in future life.

In conclusion, although cooperation among the society have many benefits, I firmly believe that competition in datily life is necessary because helps people to develop their abilities at extreme level.

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response5.5
Coherence and Cohesion5.5
Lexical Resource5.0
Grammatical Range and Accuracy5.0
Overall5.5

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You address both sides of the question and state a clear preference for competition, especially in the introduction and conclusion. The cooperation paragraph gives a relevant workplace example, while the competition paragraph explains how competition may encourage children to develop their abilities. However, both arguments remain general and are not fully explained. The sentence “but this argument is not important” dismisses the opposing view without giving a reason, which weakens your discussion of cooperation. To strengthen the response, explain the benefits and limitations of each view more fully, and support your opinion with a specific example or a clearer chain of reasoning.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, one paragraph for each view, and a conclusion. Phrases such as “On the one hand,” “On the other hand,” and “In conclusion” help signal the stages of the discussion. However, progression within paragraphs is sometimes unclear. In the cooperation paragraph, the example about a company is followed abruptly by “but this argument is not important,” so the relationship between the example and your position is difficult to follow. Some linking is also mechanical, with repeated “the main reason” and “as a result.” Use clearer links between claims, explanations, and examples, and make sure each paragraph develops one connected line of reasoning.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use some relevant vocabulary for the topic, including “cooperation,” “competitive environment,” “team work,” and “group goals.” However, the range is limited and several spelling and word-choice errors make parts of the response less clear, such as “belive,” “cooperatin,” “achive,” and “orgainsation.” Some combinations are also unnatural, including “the superior results came out” and “develop their abilities at extreme level.” Aim to use accurate, natural collocations and check spelling carefully. More precise expressions for describing outcomes and workplace or educational settings would help you explain your ideas with greater clarity and flexibility.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and longer sentences, including conditional structures such as “if children are not put in competitive environment…” and a reason clause beginning “because.” However, errors are frequent and sometimes make relationships between ideas difficult to understand. For example, “competition … has spark considerable debate” has an incorrect verb form, and “cooperation help” and “the team … not work” show problems with subject–verb agreement and verb construction. Articles and sentence punctuation are also inconsistent, as in “in competitive environment” and the lower-case starts after full stops. Practise accurate sentence patterns, especially agreement, verb forms, articles, and punctuation, before adding more complex structures.

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.