Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-08-18
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 argued that working week should be shortened to provide employees with longer weekend. I strongly agree as longer weekend improve employees' well-being and productivity.
Working five or six days a week affects employees’ personal lives and mental well‑being, leaving them with limited time and energy for meaningful productivity. When individuals have a shorter workweek, they gain space for extracurricular activities. People can learn new things on weekends as they finally have enough time to balance professional duties with personal needs. They are able to pursue their hobbies or cultivate new skills.
Moreover, individuals will have more time to connect with their families. Research shows that maintaining a healthy work‑life balance is essential for overall well‑being. When employees gain additional leisure hours, they can invest in personal growth and self‑care. As a result, their work‑life routine becomes more balanced, productivity during working days improves, and this ultimately benefits companies as well.
In addition to this, if a person has more free time, he is able to travel. Travelling broadens the mind, makes individuals more vigilant, and at the same time provides deep relaxation. It helps the mind recover from any stress or strain built up over previous days or weeks. It reduces burnout and restores emotional balance. Furthermore, exposure to new cultures and environments enhances creativity, allowing individuals to return to work with fresh perspectives and renewed motivation.
To conclude, I agree that the working week should be shortened, as longer weekends would allow people to spend more time with their families, pursue personal interests and travel and ultimately improving their overall quality of life.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 7.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 6.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 6.0 |
| Overall | 6.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0
The response clearly addresses the prompt and maintains a consistent position throughout. The arguments regarding well-being, family connection, and travel are relevant and logically extended. The ideas are well-developed, particularly the link between leisure time and increased productivity. To reach a higher band, the student could provide more specific real-world examples or evidence to support the claims, rather than relying on general statements. Overall, the response fully addresses all parts of the task with a clear, well-supported argument.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5
The essay is logically organized with a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Each paragraph focuses on a central theme, such as personal growth or travel. Cohesive devices like 'Moreover', 'In addition to this', and 'To conclude' are used effectively to guide the reader. However, the flow between some sentences is slightly mechanical, and the referencing could be more varied. The paragraphing is appropriate, and the progression of ideas is easy to follow throughout the text.
Lexical Resource — Band 6.0
The vocabulary is sufficient and generally appropriate for the task. The student uses some good collocations such as 'meaningful productivity', 'work-life balance', and 'renewed motivation'. There are some minor inaccuracies, such as 'makes individuals more vigilant' (which is slightly unnatural in this context) and 'ultimately improving' (which should be 'ultimately improves' to match the parallel structure). While the range is adequate, incorporating more sophisticated or less common lexical items would elevate the score further.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0
The student demonstrates a good mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are several error-free sentences, and the grammar is generally accurate. However, there are some recurring minor errors, such as missing articles ('working week' should be 'the working week') and subject-verb agreement issues (e.g., 'longer weekend improve' should be 'longer weekends improve'). Despite these slips, the meaning is never obscured, and the control over complex structures is sufficient for a solid band 6.5 or 7.0.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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