Band 7.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-10-02

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 7.5)

Some people believe that the working week should be reduced so that employees can enjoy a longer weekend. I agree with this view because a shorter working week can improve workers’ mental well-being and may also increase their productivity.

Firstly, having more free time can help employees maintain a better balance between their professional and personal lives. Many workers spend most of their weekdays at work and have very little time for their families, friends or personal interests. A longer weekend would give them more opportunities to relax and spend quality time with their loved ones. As a result, they may experience less stress and feel more satisfied with their daily lives.

Secondly, reducing working hours could actually improve productivity. Working for a very long period does not necessarily mean that employees accomplish more tasks. When people become tired, their concentration and efficiency can decrease, which may lead to mistakes and poor-quality work. In contrast, workers who have enough time to rest are more likely to return to work feeling refreshed and focused. For example, companies that introduce a four-day working week may allow employees to complete their responsibilities within fewer hours while maintaining their performance.

However, some businesses may be concerned that shorter working weeks could increase operating costs or make it difficult to provide services throughout the week. This issue could be addressed by introducing flexible working arrangements, such as longer working days or rotating schedules, depending on the type of job.

In conclusion, I agree that the working week should be shorter and the weekend longer. Although this change may create some challenges for employers, the benefits of better work-life balance, reduced stress and improved productivity make it a worthwhile approach.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.5

Your response addresses all parts of the task well and maintains a clear, consistent position from the introduction through to the conclusion. You successfully cover both the advantages of a shorter working week, such as improved mental well-being and productivity, and briefly acknowledge potential counter-arguments regarding operating costs. Your ideas are well-extended and supported with logical explanations, as seen when you discuss how fatigue reduces concentration and efficiency, and how rest allows workers to return refreshed. To move into the highest bands, you could push your analysis further by exploring broader economic or societal implications rather than relying primarily on individual and workplace-level impacts. Overall, your handling of the task is thorough and directly answers the prompt.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.5

Your essay demonstrates a clear logical organization and progression throughout. Each paragraph has a distinct focus, beginning with a well-defined introduction, followed by body paragraphs that address mental well-being, productivity, and a counter-argument, and closing with a summary conclusion. You make effective use of cohesive devices to guide the reader through your arguments, such as transitional markers like 'Firstly', 'Secondly', 'In contrast', and 'However'. Paragraphing is used appropriately and sufficiently to separate distinct ideas. To achieve an even higher level of cohesion, you could employ more advanced referencing and subtler lexical chains to link sentences, ensuring that transitions between ideas feel entirely seamless rather than explicitly signposted.

Lexical Resource: Band 7.0

You use a sufficient range of vocabulary with good flexibility and precision, allowing you to discuss work-life balance and productivity effectively. You successfully incorporate less common items and phrasal concepts with an appropriate academic style, such as 'mental well-being', 'professional and personal lives', 'operating costs', and 'flexible working arrangements'. There are only occasional minor inaccuracies or common collocations, but your vocabulary choice never impedes communication and remains natural throughout. To reach an even higher band, you could integrate more sophisticated, less common lexical items and idiomatic academic collocations, such as 'diminishing returns' or 'cumulative fatigue', demonstrating a wider and more fluent command of nuance and style.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 8.0

Your grammatical control is a major strength in this response. You use a wide range of complex structures, including conditional meanings, modal verbs, and subordinate clauses, with a high degree of accuracy. The majority of your sentences are completely error-free, and you display excellent control over punctuation, verb tenses, and subject-verb agreement. For instance, complex constructions like 'When people become tired, their concentration and efficiency can decrease, which may lead to mistakes...' are handled faultlessly. To maintain this high standard, ensure that you continue to proofread carefully for any rare slips in prepositions or articles, although your overall control is already exceptionally strong and reliable.

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

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