Band 7.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.0 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-07-31

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

In many countries, primary and secondary schools close for two months or more in the summer holidays.

What is the value of long school holidays?

What are the arguments in favour of shorter school holidays?

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

Student answer (Band 7.0)

It is a practice to cease the educational activities for summer holidays of two or more months in several nations. It is a valuable period to spend time with the love ones and relax from the intense stress of studies but these vacations are a serious issue because they can affect the performance of students that's why should be shortened in order in increase study period and enhance the focus of the pupils.

The vacations are the right of the students as they provide them a period to get destressed and relax themselves and it also serves as a golden chance to take a break from education and to have plenty of time with their family and friends. It is evidenced by a scientific research that it is mandatory to let our minds relax after whole year of stressed working as this activity boosts our productivity and motivation. Thus, summer vacations offer the students an opportunity to improve their working abilities.

But, these vacations should have to be restricted to a shorter period of one month because stopping the educational activities for 60 or more days will lead to laziness of students and even some pupils would not able to study immediately after these holidays. As evidenced by an incident reported by one of my colleagues at college where he disclosed that after recent summer vacations of three months his students had forgotten three chapter of his subject that he had taught them before vacations and he must teach those book chapters again.

To conclude, I would like to put forward that the summer holidays are a good way to relax and spend time with loves ones but it costs so much, that's why this period should be reduced to around one month in order to ensure the smoothness of our educational period.

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response7.0
Coherence and Cohesion7.0
Lexical Resource6.5
Grammatical Range and Accuracy6.5
Overall7.0

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0

The response addresses both parts of the prompt: the value of long holidays and the arguments for shorter ones. The position is clear throughout. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited. While you mention the benefits of relaxation and the drawbacks of 'learning loss,' these points could be expanded with more depth or specific examples beyond the anecdotal mention of a colleague. The introduction is a bit repetitive, and the conclusion simply restates the main points without adding a final synthesis. To reach a higher band, ensure that each body paragraph provides a more thorough exploration of the consequences or implications of your arguments.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The essay is logically organized into clear paragraphs, each with a distinct focus. You use some cohesive devices such as 'Thus,' 'But,' and 'To conclude' to link ideas. However, some transitions feel a bit mechanical or abrupt, particularly the start of the third paragraph ('But, these vacations...'). The flow between sentences could be smoother; for instance, the connection between the scientific research mentioned in the second paragraph and the conclusion of that paragraph could be more tightly integrated. Overall, the progression of ideas is clear, and the paragraphing is appropriate for the task.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.5

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, allowing you to express your ideas clearly. You use some topic-specific terms like 'educational activities' and 'productivity.' However, there are some inaccuracies in word choice and collocation, such as 'love ones' (should be 'loved ones'), 'get destressed' (should be 'de-stress'), and 'smoothness of our educational period.' The range is sufficient to communicate, but it lacks the precision and variety of less common lexical items that would characterize a higher band score. Focus on using more natural collocations and checking for minor word-form errors.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.5

You demonstrate a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are frequent grammatical errors that occasionally distract the reader. Examples include 'It is a practice to cease the educational activities' (awkward phrasing), 'that's why should be shortened' (missing subject 'it'), and 'some pupils would not able to study' (missing 'be'). Additionally, there are issues with article usage and verb agreement. While these errors do not impede communication, they occur frequently enough to prevent a higher score. To improve, focus on subject-verb agreement and ensuring all clauses have the necessary components.

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.