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 this contemporary era, more individuals are contemplating reducing the frequency of using flights per anum. While some societal segments argues that this has negative effects to business, others contend that this is a welcome development to the environment. I strongly believe that the merits to this devbelopment far outweigh the drawbacks.

On the one hand, reducing the number of flights strongly affects the aircraft business. Less people travelling means less number of flights. Consequently workers are going to be retrenched. Additionaly, the flight industry is associated with other industries, for instance those who offer services to the airports and those who supply food. All those sections of the economy are going to collapse. In Zimbabwe the state owned airlines collapsed when people stopped fying due to economic challenges. Therefore this development has negative effects on business. However, there are more merits.

Aeroplanes discharge greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide in the stratospheres. Those gases are causing the increase in average tempratures, global warming. Most parts of the world are now experiencing floods and prolonged droughts due to climate change. Some island such as the Meldevs are being covered with water and gacials are melting. Minimizing the frequency of flights means less toxic gases being emitted, thereby creating a safer environment. Furthermore, waste pollution at airports also declines, thereby creating a safer environment. A safer environment is more crucial than business gains for a small section of the economy.

In conclusion, although reducing the number of flights affects the economy, the environment is more important for everyone and generations to come including other creatures.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

Your position is clear from the introduction: you believe the environmental benefits outweigh the disadvantages, and the conclusion restates this view. You address both sides by discussing job losses and related industries, then explaining how fewer flights could reduce emissions and airport waste. The Zimbabwe example also gives the business argument some support. However, the comparison is not fully developed: the claim that connected industries would “collapse” is sweeping, and the environmental discussion would be stronger with a clearer explanation of how aviation emissions contribute to climate change. The disadvantages for individuals are barely considered, despite being part of the question. Developing that aspect and weighing the impacts more explicitly would make the response more complete.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The response has a clear overall structure: an introduction, a paragraph on business disadvantages, a paragraph on environmental benefits, and a conclusion. The contrastive signposts “On the one hand,” “However,” and “In conclusion” help readers follow the argument, and the main ideas are generally presented in a logical order. Some connections are less smooth or precise. For example, “All those sections of the economy are going to collapse” follows the list of airport-related industries without explaining the link, while “thereby creating a safer environment” is repeated in the environmental paragraph. Use more varied referencing and explain how each example supports the point, rather than relying mainly on broad transitions. This would make progression more natural and cohesion less repetitive.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You attempt a range of topic-related vocabulary, including “frequency,” “greenhouse gases,” “global warming,” and “climate change,” and the central meaning is generally understandable. There are also some less natural or imprecise choices that limit clarity and control: “merits to this development,” “aircraft business,” and “toxic gases” do not express the ideas as precisely as they could. Several spelling errors, including “per anum,” “devbelopment,” “tempratures,” and “gacials,” are noticeable. Some expressions are also too absolute, such as saying related industries will “collapse.” Aim for accurate collocations and check spelling carefully; a more precise vocabulary range would help you express the argument with greater flexibility.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You use both simple and more complex sentence forms, including a conditional-style result structure in “Less people travelling means less number of flights” and a participial clause in “thereby creating a safer environment.” Most sentences communicate the intended point, but some grammatical errors recur. For example, “some societal segments argues” has a subject–verb agreement problem, and “Less people” and “less number of flights” use the wrong quantifier pattern. The sentence “Aeroplanes discharge greenhouse gases … Those gases are causing the increase in average temperatures” also shows awkward article and tense choices. Work on agreement, countable and uncountable nouns, articles, and consistent tense use. Greater accuracy in these patterns, alongside your existing sentence variety, would strengthen the writing.

See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.

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