Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-09-22

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)

All around the world, primary and secondary schools have summer vacations for two or more months. These holidays act as a refreshing period for students and teachers who work hard all year long. While some people present arguments in favour of schools having relatively shorter vacations.

There are several merits of having long school holidays. These lenghthy vacations serve the students with a time period where they can have a mental break from their studies. Not just the students, teachers can also have a peaceful time like giving proper time to their family and friends. For example, when an individual studies all year dealing with all kinds of pressure situations he needs an extended span of time in which he can escape from these situations and have a good time with his friends and family. Therefore, students and teachers get a much needed break in the form of summer holidays.

Some of the arguments given in favour of shorter school vacations are that long holidays are one of the main reasons for students not performing well academically rather they waste most of their precious time playing or hanging out with friends. For instance, if a student is on a holiday there are high chances that the student will not be in touch with his studies for a long period of time. So this separation from studies results in pupils forgeting what they were taught before and the efforts made by the teachers go into waste.

In conclusion, primary and secondary schools having holidays for two or more months have various advantages like both the students and teachers get a break in which they can spend a fun time with their family and friends. On the other side some argue that schools should have shorter vacations as the students spend most of the vacations without studing and this leads to underwhelming academic results for the students.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response successfully addresses all parts of the task, examining both the value of long school holidays and the arguments in favor of shorter ones. The writer presents a clear position and supports main ideas with relevant explanations, such as mental breaks for students and teachers versus concerns about academic regression. However, some ideas tend to be slightly repetitive or under-developed, particularly in the conclusion where points are restated without adding new depth. Examples like 'when an individual studies all year dealing with all kinds of pressure situations' are extended adequately, but overall development falls just short of the rigorous demands of Band 7. Therefore, the response aligns best with Band 6.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay displays a coherent overall arrangement with clear paragraphing, dedicating distinct paragraphs to the introduction, the merits of long holidays, arguments for shorter holidays, and the conclusion. However, the introductory paragraph contains an incomplete sentence fragment ('While some people present arguments in favour of schools having relatively shorter vacations.'), which disrupts the logical flow. Cohesive devices are used, but referencing is sometimes mechanical or repetitive, such as the frequent reliance on 'students', 'teachers', and transition phrases like 'For example' and 'For instance'. Paragraphing is sufficient, but logical progression between sentences occasionally stumbles due to run-on phrasing and minor cohesion flaws, placing this essay firmly at Band 6.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully attempting less common items such as 'refreshing period', 'pressure situations', and 'academic regression' (though the latter is implied as underwhelming academic results). There are, however, several noticeable lexical and spelling errors that detract from precision. For instance, 'lenghthy' is misspelled, 'forgeting' is misspelled, and phrases like 'go into waste' should be 'go to waste'. Additionally, the collocation 'spend most of the vacations without studing' contains a spelling error ('studing'). Despite these inaccuracies, communication is not impeded, and the lexical range is sufficient to meet the Band 6 descriptor.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The essay demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence forms. The writer attempts complex structures, such as conditional clauses ('if a student is on a holiday there are high chances that...'), but these often contain punctuation errors or run-on tendencies. There are several grammatical errors throughout the text, including subject-verb agreement and preposition issues, such as 'primary and secondary schools having holidays' instead of 'the fact that primary and secondary schools have holidays'. Punctuation is occasionally weak, particularly missing commas in compound and complex sentences. While these errors are noticeable and require the reader to occasionally pause, they rarely impede overall communication, supporting a Band 6 score.

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