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)
In recent times, the affect of air planes on environment is a part of factors that contribute in environmental demage. Some people have decided that by reducing their number of travel by air every year or they stop flying altogether to reduce the effect on environment. I believe the advantages of this development does not outweigh the drawbacks for businesses and individuals, however, there are both pros and cones.
To begin with, the positive side of reducing the use of air travel is that when lesser people travel by air planes they it reduce the flights and effect on climate and atmosphere will also decrease. Because the air planes uses fuel that release toxic fumes after burning which is harmful and disturb the natural environment. And the white trail behind air planes in winters, often trap the sun rays and a factor in increasing the temperature of the Earth which called global warming. For instance,a report published by NASA in 2021, shows that air planes' white trail plays a major role in rising the Earth's temperature by 0.23%. Hence, when individuals prefer air travel its effects automatically reduced.
On the other hand, it significantly impact the air travel industry as when people reduce air travel then companies and airlines limit their staff and many individuals losses their jobs and in some cases airlines goes bankrupt. To illustrate my point, during covid lockdown air operations around the world stoped, and many small airlines cannot bare the expensis without operating and eventually went bankrupt. Which results in many people losse their jobs which increase the load on the governments.
In conclusion, as there are benefits like less impact on environment and drawback such as job loss and closure of many airlines. In my opinion, advantages does not outweigh disadvantages because drawbacks are more serious.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 6.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 6.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0
You address both sides of the question and state a clear view: you believe the environmental gains do not outweigh the drawbacks. The discussion of aviation emissions and contrails is relevant, and the COVID-19 example supports your point about airline closures and job losses. However, the environmental case is explained more fully than the comparison of effects on individuals and businesses; the business impact is clearer than the direct disadvantages for individual travellers. Some claims, such as the NASA figure, would be more convincing if explained and connected explicitly to the scale of the benefits. Develop both sides with specific consequences, then weigh them directly before concluding.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5
The response has a clear overall structure: an introduction, separate paragraphs for benefits and drawbacks, and a conclusion. Signposts such as “To begin with,” “On the other hand,” and “In conclusion” make the direction of the argument easy to follow. This meets the lower-band expectation for coherent organisation and shows some of the flexibility associated with stronger cohesion. However, links within paragraphs are sometimes mechanical or unclear. For example, “Because…” begins a fragment, and “Which results in…” does not connect smoothly to the preceding sentence. The final sentence of the benefits paragraph also appears to reverse your intended meaning. Use complete sentences and clearer references, and make each paragraph’s final point lead logically to the next.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.5
You use vocabulary relevant to the topic, including “toxic fumes,” “global warming,” “air travel industry,” and “went bankrupt,” so the reader can understand the main argument. There are also attempts at more specific language, such as “white trail” and “environmental damage.” However, the range and control are uneven, with noticeable spelling, word-form, and collocation problems: “affect” for “effect,” “demage,” “cones,” “lesser people,” and “bare the expensis.” Some phrases are imprecise, including “the effect on climate and atmosphere” and “the load on the governments.” Build accuracy by checking spelling and choosing natural collocations; more precise terms for emissions and economic consequences would also strengthen the discussion.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0
You attempt both simple and more complex sentence forms, including a conditional structure in “when people reduce air travel then companies and airlines limit their staff” and a relative clause in “which is harmful.” The main ideas are generally recoverable, but errors in agreement, verb forms, articles, and sentence boundaries are frequent enough to make some sentences difficult to read. Examples include “the advantages … does not,” “air planes uses,” “many individuals losses their jobs,” and the fragment “Which results in many people…”. The opening sentence also has an unclear grammatical structure. Practise checking subject–verb agreement and keeping dependent clauses attached to complete sentences. Greater control of these patterns would make your argument much clearer.
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