Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-10-22

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 people have decided to fly less or stopped flying. This essay discusses the environmental advantages and business disadvantages of this development, and I believe that the disadvantages of individuals and businesses outweight the environmental benefits.

On the one hand, there are some individuals or businesses, that require flying abroad for import and export, on which the economy of a country is dependent. If these individuals are not allowed to fly and are unable to do the operations, it would be a distaster for a country's overall economy. For instance, there are approximately 10% of people of a country that are responsible for the country's economic development and if they can't contribute to the economy, it will be collapsed. Moreover, reducing the number of flights might hamper a significant number of people's living because the businesses that provide their salary might not be able to generate any revenue to provide salary. As a result, reducing the number of flights will not only affect the businesses but also the employees and their family that rely on these businesses directly or indirectly.

On the other hand, decreasing the number of flight would have positive impact on the environment because of the reduced fuel consumption. However, there are other significant factors, such as deforrestation or industry pollution, that contribute more to the contamination of the environment. For example, every year a significant amount of industry waste is dumped into the river by several factories which contaminates the water of the river and endangers the marine ecosystem. Therefore, people should focus on these factors first to reduce environmental pollution because these are relatively easier to prevent and there is no benefit of activities such as deforrestation or industry pollution.

In conclusion, although reducing the number of flights would reduce environmental degradation, there are other areas where people can focus to reduce the environment pollution. I believe the disadvantages of individuals and businesses outweigh the environmental advantages because the reliance of a country's economy and people's living on these stakeholders are far more significant.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

Your position is clear from the introduction and conclusion: you believe the disadvantages for individuals and businesses outweigh the environmental benefits. You address both sides, giving relevant points about employment and business income, and reduced fuel use. However, some ideas are more fully explained than others. The claim that around 10% of a country's population drives its economic development is unsupported and does not clearly show why fewer flights would cause economic collapse. The environmental discussion also shifts to deforestation and river pollution, which are relevant comparisons but do not fully assess the specific benefits of reducing aviation. Develop the direct effects of fewer flights and support the economic claims with more precise reasoning or examples.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The response has a clear overall structure, with an introduction, two contrasting body paragraphs and a conclusion. The progression from business impacts to environmental effects is easy to follow, and signposts such as “On the one hand,” “On the other hand” and “In conclusion” make the organisation clear. This meets the lower-band expectations securely and shows some features of stronger control. However, the linking can feel formulaic, and some connections between claims need clearer explanation. For example, the move from the 10% economic claim to national collapse is abrupt, while the comparison with other pollution sources does not fully connect to the question of whether aviation’s benefits outweigh its costs. Use more precise referencing and explain the relationship between each example and your main argument.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of topic vocabulary, including “fuel consumption,” “economic development,” “revenue,” “marine ecosystem” and “environmental degradation.” These choices help communicate the main ideas, and some less common terms are attempted. At times, however, word choice and collocation are inaccurate or repetitive: “the environment pollution” is unnatural, “people’s living” does not express the intended idea clearly, and “the number of flight” is imprecise. There are also spelling errors such as “outweight,” “distaster” and “deforrestation.” These do not prevent understanding, but greater accuracy and more natural phrasing would improve precision. Review common collocations and proofread spelling, especially in key terms.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, including conditional structures such as “If these individuals are not allowed to fly…” and a relative clause in “businesses that provide their salary.” Most of the argument remains understandable, but some grammatical errors recur. For example, “there are some individuals or businesses, that require” has an unnecessary comma, and “the economy… will be collapsed” uses an incorrect passive construction. There are also agreement and article issues in “the number of flight would have positive impact” and “their family.” These errors rarely block meaning, which is a strength at this level. To improve, check subject–verb agreement, singular and plural forms, articles, and sentence punctuation, while continuing to use varied sentence structures.

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