Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-10-24

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)

It is common in many countries to give almost two months or more holidays during the summer to primary and secondary schoolers. There are many benefits of long school holidays but some favour shorter school holidays for a few reasons.

On the one hand, longer holidays encourage students to spend time with their friends and families. Summer holiday is the best time for young people to spend time with their family and create long lasting memories with them. It can also help forge a deeper bond between them. It is also a great time to focus on ones hobby. For example, if someone likes to do gardening they can spend more time on it because they won't have to go to school after waking up. They can also spend time exploring new things that they find interest in. A long summer holiday is all about forgetting the academic pressure and exploring new things in life.

On the other hand, long holidays stray us from the daily disciplined life. Discipline is important in this modern generation. If people are away from their normal life for too long they might start losing their discipline. For example, if a student is working on a project and suddenly the summer vacation arrivies then he might lose interest in his project. Shorter holidays don't have this risk. Also, shorter holidays don't put unnecessary pressure on the teachers to complete the syllabus in time. Having too many long holidays drastically lower the amount of time students learn in the school. Which can lead to rush in completing the academic topics.

In conclusion, there are advantages and disadvantages of long summer holidays. Therefore, holidays must be balanced for proper academic education and students mental health.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You address both parts of the question and maintain a relevant discussion of the benefits of longer holidays and the case for shorter ones. The first body paragraph gives clear examples of family time, hobbies and exploring new interests, while the second explains concerns about discipline and time available for teaching. However, some points are more fully developed than others: the benefits are illustrated, but the argument that shorter holidays reduce pressure on teachers is asserted rather than explained, and the project example could clarify how a shorter break would help. The conclusion gives a balanced position, but “holidays must be balanced” could be made more precise by stating what balance you recommend. Develop each main argument with a clearer explanation or example.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The response has a coherent overall arrangement: an introduction, two contrasting body paragraphs signposted by “On the one hand” and “On the other hand,” and a conclusion. Ideas generally progress logically within each paragraph, and examples help connect claims to explanations. This already provides a clear structure, but some linking is mechanical, particularly the repeated use of “also” and the predictable contrast markers. A few connections could be clearer: the shift from losing discipline to teachers’ syllabus pressure introduces a separate argument without a transition, and “Which can lead to rush…” is detached from the preceding sentence. Use a wider range of links and integrate related points into complete, smoothly connected sentences.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of vocabulary to discuss the topic, including “forge a deeper bond,” “academic pressure,” “disciplined life” and “complete the syllabus.” These choices communicate the main ideas, and the response attempts some less common expressions. However, several word choices or collocations are inaccurate or informal, such as “stray us from the daily disciplined life,” “exploring new things that they find interest in” and “arrivies.” “Schoolers” is also less natural than “school students.” These slips do not prevent understanding, but they limit precision and naturalness. Aim for more conventional academic collocations and check spelling and word forms; for example, describe holidays as disrupting routines rather than straying people from a disciplined life.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, including conditional structures such as “if a student is working on a project… then he might lose interest” and clauses explaining the effects of holidays. Most ideas remain understandable, but some grammatical errors and punctuation problems persist. For example, “ones hobby” needs a possessive apostrophe, “Having too many long holidays drastically lower” has a subject–verb agreement error, and “Which can lead to rush…” is a sentence fragment. The phrase “students mental health” also needs a possessive form. Review agreement, possessives and sentence boundaries, and combine the final fragment with the sentence before it. Greater accuracy in these areas would make the varied structures more controlled.

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