Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-08-15
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 6.0)
In some countries, both the primary and secondary schools close for two months or more in the summer holidays. During this period, children often have a significant amount of free time. Some people argue that long school holidays are beneficial, while other argue that shorter holidays are important. This essay will discuss valuable points of long holidays and the arguments in favour of shorter school holidays.
On the one hand, long school holidays encourage children to participate in extracurricular activities. This is because children may not have enough time during school term to participate in these activities. For example, if a child is willing to learn to play the piano, they may not be able to learn this during school term due to busy schedules. Therefore, a child can learn to play the piano during long summer holidays because to learn this skill several months of practice is required. Additionally, longer holidays give family an opportunity to plan longer trips. Families can plan long trips to abroad without worrying about their children's school schedules.
On the other hand, there are some important aspects of shorter holidays. Firstly, shorter holidays help children to maintain study routines. Children may lose their study habits and techniques during their long summer breaks. As a result, shorter holidays prevent them from losing these habits. Secondly, shorter holidays help children to reduce the amount of unproductive time spent at homes. For instance, shorter breaks prevent a child from spending huge amount of time in unproductive manner.
In conclusion, both longer and shorter holidays remain important. A balanced approach works best. Longer holidays help children gain additional skills, whereas shorter holidays maintain children's study routines.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 6.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 6.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0
The essay addresses both parts of the prompt: the value of long holidays and the arguments for shorter ones. The ideas are relevant, such as extracurricular activities for long holidays and maintaining study routines for shorter ones. However, the development is somewhat limited. For instance, the point about 'unproductive time' is mentioned but not fully explored with specific examples or deeper reasoning. The position is clear, but the supporting arguments could be more detailed to reach a higher band. Overall, the response covers all requirements of the task effectively.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5
The essay is logically organized with a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Each paragraph has a central theme. Cohesive devices are used, such as 'On the one hand,' 'Additionally,' and 'Firstly,' which help guide the reader. However, some transitions feel slightly mechanical, and the referencing is occasionally repetitive. The progression of ideas is clear, but the flow between sentences could be improved by using a wider variety of linking words and better pronoun referencing to avoid repeating 'children' or 'holidays' too frequently.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The vocabulary is adequate for the task and generally conveys the intended meaning clearly. There is an attempt to use topic-specific vocabulary like 'extracurricular activities' and 'study routines.' However, the range is somewhat limited, and there is a tendency to repeat basic words like 'important' and 'time.' Some collocations are slightly unnatural, such as 'plan long trips to abroad' (should be 'plan trips abroad'). To improve, you should incorporate more precise synonyms and idiomatic expressions to demonstrate a more sophisticated command of the language.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is always clear, there are recurring grammatical errors. For example, 'other argue' should be 'others argue,' and 'at homes' should be 'at home.' There are also minor issues with article usage and prepositional phrases. While these errors do not impede communication, they prevent the essay from reaching a higher band. To improve, focus on subject-verb agreement and refining the use of articles and prepositions in more complex sentence constructions.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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