Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-11-13

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

The working week should be shorter and workers should have a longer weekend.

Do you agree or disagree?

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

Student answer (Band 6.5)

It is often suggested that the working week should be shorter and workers should have a longer weekend. While many people disagree with this idea as they feel it would reduce productivity and outcome, I agree with this opinion.

There are many reasons that support the idea of having a longer weekend than a working week. It would not only improve the quality of life but have a positive impact on one's work as well. We are living in a digital era where almost every work is automated. It saves much time and people still come regularly to their jobs and sit idly for long hours. This reduces their productivity as employees are tired and it affects the outcome. Instead of asking people to come to their jobs and work five times a day, such measures should be taken that enhances their work output and maintains a good work-life balance. For example, my brother who works as a software engineer for an international company gets 4 days off a week. It has helped him in improving focus on work. Longer working hours and days reduces the productivity of an individual and one can easily get distracted from their work.

There are some disadvantages of having a longer weekend as well. One can become too relaxed and stop taking their work seriously. There are risks of employees getting lazy and having unnecessary demands. Also, it would be difficult for people to come out of their comfort zone and work for the rest of the week.

In conclusion, some steps should be taken before making the working week shorter than the weekend. Companies should make some policies regarding discipline, attendance and work strategy before reducing the working days. This way, it will benefit both the employees and employers.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

Your position is clear: you agree with a shorter working week, and you give relevant reasons, including improved work-life balance and your brother’s experience in a four-day-week job. You also acknowledge possible disadvantages, so the response addresses both the opinion question and relevant counterpoints. The explanation that automation leaves some employees sitting idle is pertinent, but the link between this and reducing the number of working days could be made more explicit. The disadvantages—such as workers becoming lazy or making unnecessary demands—are asserted rather than explained or supported. To strengthen the response, develop these points with specific reasoning or examples and clarify what policies would preserve productivity while shortening the week.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The response has a clear overall structure: an introduction, a paragraph supporting the proposal, a paragraph on disadvantages, and a conclusion. Ideas generally progress logically, and signposts such as “For example” and “In conclusion” help the reader follow the argument. The supporting paragraph, however, contains several ideas—automation, tiredness, productivity, and work-life balance—without always making their connections explicit. The shift to disadvantages is clear, but the final paragraph introduces company policies without explaining how they address the concerns raised. Some linking is also mechanical, particularly the repeated use of “There are” to introduce points. Use clearer references and transitions, and organise each paragraph around one main claim followed by explanation and evidence.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of vocabulary for the topic, including “productivity,” “automated,” “work-life balance,” and “comfort zone.” These choices make the main ideas clear, and the example about a software engineer gives the discussion some specificity. However, several expressions are imprecise or unnatural, such as “productivity and outcome,” “almost every work,” and “work five times a day”; the last phrase appears to mean working five days a week. “Unnecessary demands” is also vague in this context. Aim for more precise collocations and avoid repeating general terms such as “work” and “people.” More accurate phrasing would make your argument sound more fluent and controlled.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, including the contrast in “While many people disagree …, I agree” and the conditional structure “before making the working week shorter.” Most sentences communicate their meaning, but some grammatical errors remain. For example, “such measures … that enhances” has a subject–verb agreement problem, while “Longer working hours and days reduces” should use a plural verb. There are also issues with countability and articles in “almost every work” and “improving focus on work.” Review agreement with plural subjects and the use of articles and countable nouns. Greater accuracy in these areas, alongside continued use of varied sentence structures, would improve control.

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.