Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · IELTS General Essentials · 2026-07-29

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

In many countries, people do not recycle their rubbish as much as they could.

Why do you think this is?

What can be done to change this?

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

Student answer (Band 6.5)

Recycling has been considered a time-consuming process, since it requires a lot of effort and heavy machinery; people do not like to recycle waste.

Individuals are reluctant to care about environmental damage. There should be laws to oblige people to reuse items more than once.

One of the reasons for not reusing objects or items is that everybody wants to follow the culture of 'use and throw'. To elaborate on it, after a short period of use, instead of being repaired or reused, people tend to discard items. To exemplify, many people buy inexpensive clothes, wear them only a few times, and then throw them away to keep up with changing fashion trends. Another reason is that it entails substantial costs to complete the process of recycling.

There could be solutions to deal with rubbish management. Firstly, individuals should be made aware of the advantages and ways to reuse the items. Secondly, there must be waste management methods for every industry and community, so they cannot opt for dumping the trash; instead, go for recycling the waste products. For instance, landfilling and waste material treatment should be prioritized at the least expense.

To conclude, it is not a matter of concern for a specific country but for all the developed nations. Though recycling can be done at the individual level, it should be promoted among the masses who are not educated enough about the detrimental effects of waste. Management authorities must be stricter regarding sustainable materials management to reduce the chances of trash dumping.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The response addresses both parts of the prompt: reasons for low recycling rates and potential solutions. However, the development is somewhat thin. While you mention the 'use and throw' culture and costs as reasons, these points could be expanded with more specific detail or deeper analysis to reach a higher band. The solutions provided, such as public awareness and stricter management, are relevant but remain quite general. To improve, ensure that each point is fully extended with clear examples or logical consequences. The position is clear, but the overall depth of the argument is limited, placing this in the Band 6 category.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, each with a clear focus. You use some cohesive devices such as 'To elaborate on it', 'To exemplify', and 'Firstly', which help guide the reader. However, the flow between some sentences feels a bit mechanical, and the transition between the introduction and the body paragraphs could be smoother. The referencing is generally clear, but the overall progression of ideas could be more sophisticated. The paragraphing is appropriate, and the essay maintains a coherent structure throughout, which is consistent with the requirements for Band 6.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.5

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'detrimental effects', 'sustainable materials management', and 'reluctant'. There are some attempts to use less common vocabulary, though some collocations are slightly unnatural, such as 'opt for dumping the trash'. The vocabulary is sufficient to convey your meaning clearly, and there are no significant spelling errors that impede communication. To move to a higher band, focus on using more precise collocations and a wider variety of topic-specific academic vocabulary to express your ideas with more nuance.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.5

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are some grammatical errors, such as 'it entails substantial costs to complete the process of recycling' (which is slightly awkward) and the phrasing in the first paragraph. However, these errors do not impede communication. You have a reasonable grasp of punctuation and sentence construction. To achieve a higher score, try to incorporate a wider variety of complex grammatical structures, such as conditional sentences or passive voice constructions, with greater accuracy to demonstrate more control over your writing.

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.