Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-11-09

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Some people have decided to reduce the number of times they fly every year or to stop flying altogether.

Do you think the environmental benefits of this development outweigh the disadvantages for individuals and businesses?

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

Student answer (Band 6.0)

Although people have decided to reduce the number of times they travel by air or completely stop flying, this has some drawbacks like less face to face interaction but also has great long-term ecological benefits like reduced level of pollution. I strongly believe that flying less or not at all has more environmental benefits which outweighs its disadvantages.

Flying by air creates alot of ease and convenience for people travelling to places with very long distances. This helps individuals to reach places in limited time. However, sometimes it is compulsory to travel for trade and face to face meetings as most of the globally recognised industries prefer it. Similarly, a major revenue of a country is generated by tourism as it helps in gaining profit when tourists spend money to explore a country and buys things. Some individuals also travel by air for leisure time and holiday as a form of hobby but this could be replaced by travelling and exploring your own country and its culture and historical background.

Travelling less or not at all proves to be beneficial for the environment as it produces less carbon footprint by reducing the use of fossil fuels directly influencing the pollution levels because burning of fossil fuel produces smoke and releases harmful chemicals in air, thus, polluting the air and surroundings. In addition to that, it also cause excessive noise pollution which has potential harm to the society. So, simply less use of aeroplanes directly benefits the ecological surrounding reducing air and noise pollution.

In conclusion, although flying is necessary sometimes, it is important to reduce the number of flights for potential ecological benefits such as less carbon effusions and reduced air and noise pollution.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

Your position is clear: you believe the environmental benefits of flying less outweigh the disadvantages, and you address effects on individuals and businesses as well as the environment. The discussion of business travel and tourism recognises genuine disadvantages, while the points about emissions and noise explain the benefits. However, some ideas are less fully developed than others. For example, you mention that industries prefer face-to-face meetings but do not explain how reducing flights would affect their work or what alternatives they could use. The tourism point is also brief, and the environmental case would be stronger with a specific example or clearer comparison of the scale of benefits and costs. Develop these points with explanation and evidence.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a clear overall structure: an introduction states your view, the body paragraphs consider disadvantages and environmental benefits, and the conclusion restates your position. Linking expressions such as “However,” “Similarly,” and “In addition to that” help show relationships between ideas. At times, though, the progression within a paragraph is less controlled: the second paragraph moves from business travel to tourism and then personal holidays without clearly connecting these examples to the central comparison. Some transitions are also mechanical, and “So” begins a sentence in a way that makes the final point feel abrupt. Group related examples more deliberately and use clearer references to connect each point to your argument.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of vocabulary for the topic, including “carbon footprint,” “fossil fuels,” “noise pollution,” and “ecological benefits.” These terms help communicate the environmental argument, and the meaning is generally clear. There are also attempts at less common expressions, but some choices are inaccurate or unnatural, such as “a major revenue of a country,” “gaining profit,” and “carbon effusions.” “Alot” is also incorrectly written as one word. Aim for more precise collocations and check spelling: for example, refer to tourism as a source of revenue, say that businesses generate profits, and use “carbon emissions.” This would make the argument sound more natural and exact.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, including a concession in “Although flying is necessary sometimes” and a cause-and-effect structure beginning “because burning of fossil fuel produces smoke.” Most sentences remain understandable, but some grammatical errors occur. For example, “which outweighs its disadvantages” has a subject–verb agreement problem because the subject is plural (“benefits”); “it also cause” should be “it also causes”; and “tourists spend money … and buys things” shifts agreement within the sentence. Articles and plurals also need attention in phrases such as “burning of fossil fuel.” Review agreement across longer sentences and check that each clause has a consistent subject and verb. Greater accuracy would strengthen your otherwise clear meaning.

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