Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-09-01

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)

While many people argue that summer vacations should be as long as much for two or three months, others put forward their opinion that these should be for shorter time period. In my opinion, summer holidays need e for two or three months.

On the one side of the argument, there are various people who argue that summer holidays need to be shorter. The most compelling reason for this is that shorter holidays allow learning to continue more consistently because long breaks can cause students to forget previously learned concepts. For instance, students particularly younger children, may lose academic progress during long vacations.

Moreover, parents, especially working guardians may reduce their burden of struggling with tow- or three- months homework which can be covered easily in one month instead of waiting for school openings. As a result, shorter holidays are more convenient for people to maintain discipline and routine in children.

despite of above arguments, I am of the view that long breaks provide physical and mental relaxation because it gives chance to individuals to spend quality time with their friends and family, which helps them to strengthen their family bonds. Furthermore, it is my firm belief that long summer vacations helps students to develop their skills and hobbies because students have more time to learn activities such as sports, music, arts and painting. Therefore, long summer holidays gives chance to students to develop their talent and helps them to spend quality of time with their families.

In conclusion, although both views are commonly held in society, I believe that long summer holidays helps to reduce stress and give motivation to students learn better in their school. This is because of improve physical and mental health and exposure of different skills and talent. Given this situation, it is recommended that instead of one extremely long summer break, schools could provide several shorter breaks throughout the year.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The response addresses both parts of the prompt: the value of long holidays and the arguments for shorter ones. You clearly state your position in the introduction and maintain it throughout. However, the development of ideas is somewhat repetitive. For instance, the argument regarding 'physical and mental relaxation' and 'developing skills' is mentioned in the body paragraph and then restated in the conclusion. To reach a higher band, ensure that each paragraph introduces distinct, well-supported points rather than reiterating the same concepts. The conclusion also introduces a new suggestion (several shorter breaks) which was not previously discussed, making the argument feel slightly disjointed.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, each with a clear focus. You use cohesive devices such as 'On the one side of the argument', 'Moreover', and 'Furthermore' to link ideas. However, some transitions are slightly mechanical or awkward, such as 'despite of above arguments', which is grammatically incorrect and disrupts the flow. Additionally, the referencing is occasionally unclear; for example, the transition between the arguments for shorter holidays and your own opinion could be smoother. Improving the variety and accuracy of your linking words will help the essay read more naturally.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'compelling reason', 'academic progress', and 'strengthen their family bonds'. However, there are several instances of word-choice errors and awkward phrasing, such as 'as long as much for two or three months' and 'struggling with tow- or three- months homework'. These errors do not impede communication, but they do limit the precision of your writing. To improve, focus on collocations and ensure that you are using phrases in their standard idiomatic form.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The essay contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While you attempt complex sentences, there are frequent grammatical errors, particularly with subject-verb agreement ('long summer vacations helps', 'long summer holidays gives') and prepositions ('despite of'). There are also minor punctuation and spelling errors, such as 'tow-' instead of 'two'. While these errors rarely impede the reader's understanding, they occur frequently enough to prevent a higher score. Focusing on proofreading for basic agreement and preposition usage will significantly improve your accuracy.

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

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