Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-10-11

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 many nations, primary and secondary schools have summer break lasting for 2 months or longer. This essay will discuss both point of views. Although long term holidays allow the students to rest and pursue personal interest, shorter holidays may help them main academic progress.

In long term, holidays students usually take rest from studies and focus on personal development which is helpful for a healthy child. Students need sufficient time to rest after a demanding academic year. They are free from lessons, homework and examinations, as a result they are more refreshed to go to school and increase their grades at school. For example students can spend time with either family, friends or participate in recreational activities during the summer.

In short term holidays, students can main their academic progress through consists learning. Shorter holidays proven to be an advantage for maintaining the grades at school. They not only tend to spend less time in other activities like in sports, but also spend less time stay away from lessons and practice their subjects more regularly and the outcome will be they may find it easier to remember the previous lessons when they return to class. For example students who continue practicing mathematics questions during short term holidays are likely to remember the formulas.

To conclude, In long term holidays students can rest and participate in other activities instead of learning they are likely to feel more refreshed for learning after the holidays, In contrast, in short term holidays students can maintain the academic progress through consists learning and staying in touch with pervious lessons.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

The response addresses both questions: it explains that longer holidays provide rest and time for personal activities, while shorter breaks may help students retain academic knowledge. The examples about spending time with family and practising mathematics are relevant. However, the discussion remains fairly general, and some claims need clearer explanation. For instance, the point that students “spend less time in other activities like in sports” does not clearly show why shorter holidays are beneficial; the stronger argument is that learning is interrupted for less time. The conclusion repeats the two positions rather than drawing them together or clarifying which benefits matter most. Develop each main idea with a more precise explanation and a specific supporting example to make the response more complete and convincing.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The essay has a clear overall structure: an introduction, separate paragraphs for the two sides, and a conclusion. This makes the progression easy to follow, and signposts such as “For example” and “In contrast” help connect ideas. The organisation is coherent, though some linking is mechanical and a few connections are unclear. In the shorter-holiday paragraph, the sentence beginning “They not only…” is difficult to follow because its two parts do not form a clear comparison. The conclusion also repeats earlier points, and its long sentence joins several ideas without clear punctuation. Use more precise referencing and vary the way you connect explanations and examples; split the conclusion into clearly punctuated sentences and ensure each paragraph develops one central point.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The vocabulary is sufficient to communicate the main ideas, with relevant terms such as “academic year,” “personal development,” “recreational activities,” and “maintaining the grades.” However, the range is limited and several noticeable word-choice or collocation errors make parts of the argument unclear. “Main academic progress” and “main their academic progress” appear to be attempts to express maintaining progress, while “through consists learning” does not convey a clear meaning. “Short term holidays” is also repeated, and “pervious lessons” is misspelled. Aim for accurate, natural combinations rather than more complicated wording: for example, use “maintain academic progress” and “continuous learning.” Proofread spelling and choose precise terms consistently.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The response attempts both simple and more complex sentence forms, including the contrast structure “Although…,” the result clause “as a result,” and “not only…but also.” These attempts show some range, but control is uneven, and errors sometimes make relationships between ideas difficult to understand. For example, “In long term, holidays students…” has an unclear sentence structure, while “students who continue practicing… are likely to remember” is more successfully formed. There are also errors in articles, agreement, and punctuation, such as the missing article in “after demanding academic year” and the comma splice in the conclusion. Practise building accurate sentences around one main clause, then add subordinate clauses; check articles, verb forms, and sentence boundaries during editing.

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