Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-09-30

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 several countries, children in primary and secondary schools can have long summer holidays for about two or three months. This development can have a positive influence on children's phsychological health. However, reducing the period of these holidays may also be benficial in terms of their academic progress. This essay adress the adavatages of both views.

On the one hand, long-term holidays can allow children a greater opportunity for recovery from academic stress. Attending schools, studying academic materials, completing school wok and preparing for exams, all these activites can be demanding and may place considerable pressure on students. Therefore, having longer holiday would provide them sufficient time to dissconnect from academic study and recharge themselves through practicing their hobbies or travelling with their families. Consequently, when students return to school, they would be more active and willing to perform well in their academic year. For example, a student may be stressed after his final exams and in the holiday, he may travel abroad with his family. This could provide him a great opportunity to relax and enjoy quality time with their familes. when the holday ends, they would be motivated to start the new term.

However, spending shorter holiday can also represent a valuble time for students for academic advancement. In a sense, having a shorter holiday would subsequently means that students would spend additional hours in school. Consequently, they would learn additional academic materials and spend more time improving their skills. Moreover, children with low-performance can participate in classes for individual support to improve their weaknesses areas, while high-performance students can progress further, academically. This would contribute in expanding their knowledge and broaden their minds which may enhance academic growth. Furthermore, this also could help reduce the time they may spend in less productive activities at home such as watching televison or playing video games.

In conclusion, longer holidays can help children to relax and reduce anxiety resulting from academic study and allow them to recover sufficiently before the beginning of the next academic year. Nevertheless, shorter holidays can help students to increase their knowledge, develop their skills and overcome their weaknesses which may support academic progression.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

The response addresses all parts of the task thoroughly, discussing both the value of long school holidays and the arguments in favour of shorter ones. The introduction clearly outlines the two main perspectives, and each body paragraph explores a distinct side of the argument with relevant supporting points. For instance, the discussion on psychological recovery highlights stress from exams, while the counter-argument focuses on academic advancement and reducing unproductive home activities. Ideas are well-extended with suitable examples, such as travelling abroad or attending individual support classes. The position is clear throughout the essay. However, there are minor typos in the introductory paragraph (e.g., "phsychological", "benficial", "adress", "adavantages") which slightly detract from precision, but the overall task response easily meets the requirements for a Band 7.0.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The essay displays a clear logical organisation and progression throughout. Each paragraph has a distinct central topic, starting with a well-defined introduction, followed by two balanced body paragraphs representing opposing views, and ending with a concise conclusion. Cohesive devices such as "On the one hand", "However", "Consequently", and "In conclusion" are used effectively to signal shifts in argument and maintain flow. Referencing is generally clear, though there is a slight pronoun inconsistency in the second body paragraph (shifting between singular "a student" and plural "they"/"their familes"). Paragraphing is used sufficiently and appropriately, ensuring the overall arrangement remains coherent and easy to follow, aligning closely with the Band 7 descriptors.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The student demonstrates an adequate to good range of vocabulary suitable for the task. Less common lexical items and phrases are attempted, such as "psychological health", "academic progress", "recovery from academic stress", and "academic advancement". However, there are noticeable spelling and word choice errors, particularly in the introduction ("phsychological", "benficial", "adress", "adavantages") and minor morphological slips in the body paragraphs (e.g., "school wok", "dissconnect", "valuble", "weaknesses areas"). Despite these inaccuracies, the vocabulary is sufficient to convey meaning clearly without impeding communication, placing the response firmly at Band 6.0.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The writer uses a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating control over conditional and subordinate clauses (e.g., "Therefore, having longer holiday would provide them sufficient time to dissconnect...", "Moreover, children with low-performance can participate in classes..."). There is good variety in sentence structures. However, several grammatical and punctuation errors occur throughout the text, including missing articles (e.g., "having longer holiday", "spending shorter holiday"), subject-verb agreement issues, and preposition choices (e.g., "improving their weaknesses areas"). Although these errors are noticeable and occur with some frequency, they rarely impede communication, which is characteristic of the Band 6 descriptor.

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