Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-08-21

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)

Some individuals opted to limit or end the number of times they spend on air flights every year. I think that with this approach disadvantages outweigh risks because many people are unable to meet their relatives and entrepreneurs are not able to expand their businesses.

One major disadvantage is that many individuals may find it challenging to meet their families abroad. Many people have different schedules to travel overseas based on their jobs or vacations. If flights are limited, they may find hard to find a suitable flight to reach their destinations. As a result, they are unable to meet their families, resulting in emotional stress, which may affect their overall productivity. For instance, during COVID pandemic, although flights were limited to reduce the spread of disease, most overseas students and workers were exhausted as they were stuck in an unfamiliar country for a long time. I think, flights should not be reduced or stopped.

Another drawback is that some businessmen have to plane sudden trips for international investments and meetings. If they do not get flights in their needs, they are unable to fulfill their tasks on time. This may cause them huge losses, which ultimately restricts their potential to expand their businesses. This is particularly true for import and export businesses, in which investors often have to make immediate trips to check the quality of products. If they do not find flights on time, they may receive bad quality products which may cause them loss, limiting their financial resources to invest more.

In conclusion, some people choose to restrict or stop the number of fights. I am against this view because this will affect people both emotionally and financially.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses the prompt by taking a clear position against reducing air travel. However, the task requires a balanced discussion of both environmental benefits and the disadvantages for individuals and businesses. The essay focuses almost exclusively on the disadvantages, failing to adequately acknowledge or discuss the environmental benefits mentioned in the prompt. This leads to an unbalanced argument. While the ideas regarding family separation and business losses are relevant, they are not fully developed in relation to the environmental trade-off required by the question. To improve, you must ensure all parts of the prompt are addressed with equal weight.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay is organized into clear paragraphs, each with a central topic. Cohesive devices are used, such as 'One major disadvantage', 'As a result', and 'In conclusion', which help the reader follow the argument. However, the progression of ideas is somewhat mechanical, and some transitions feel repetitive. The referencing is generally clear, but the link between the environmental context and the specific arguments could be strengthened to improve the overall flow. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate the two main points of the argument.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The vocabulary is adequate for the task but lacks the range and precision required for higher bands. You use some relevant terms like 'international investments' and 'emotional stress', but there are instances of awkward phrasing, such as 'plane sudden trips' (instead of 'plan') and 'flights in their needs'. The range is somewhat limited, relying on basic descriptors. To achieve a higher score, try to incorporate more sophisticated collocations and topic-specific vocabulary related to environmental sustainability and global commerce.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are frequent grammatical errors, such as 'opted to limit or end the number of times they spend on air flights' and 'they may find hard to find'. There are also minor errors in word form and preposition usage. While these errors do not significantly impede communication, they occur frequently enough to prevent a higher score. Increasing the variety of complex structures while ensuring accuracy in subject-verb agreement and article usage would be beneficial.

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

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