Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · IELTS General Essentials · 2026-09-07

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)

In today's evolving world, rubbish is a pressing issue all around the word. In many developing nations, people do not recycle their waste as they should have to do. For this issue mainly developed because of a lack of awareness and convenient recycling facilities. There are several steps that governments and individuals can take to improve this situations.

Out of all the arguments, one of the prominent reason for recycling rates is that many people not fully understand its importance. They may think that separating rubbish is unnecessary or that their individual efforts will not make a difference. In addition, in many countries recycling can sometimes be inconvenient for their citizens. For example, if recycling bins are not available near homes, people may simply put all their waste into one general bin. Moreover, some people are too busy or careless to separate different types of waste. As a consequence, recyclable materials such as plastic, glass and paper often sent to landfills.

Nevertheless, there are several effective ways to encourage people to recycle. Firstly, governments should provide clear information about recycling through schools, television and social media. If children learn about recycling process at school from an early ages then they can develop good habits about waste management. Secondly, local authorities should provide separate bins for residents so that they can put their waste in proper bins. Finally, governments could introduce financial incentives, such as refunds for plastic bottles or fines for people who repeatedly fail to follow recycling bins.

In conclusion, people often recycle less because of lack of awareness and find the process inconvenient. However, these problems can be mitigated through governments and individuals intervention by educating the public, providing proper facilities and offering suitable rewards. If these measures are applied effectively, recycling rates are likely to increase and the amount of waste sent to landfills can be decreased.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0

The response addresses both parts of the prompt: reasons for low recycling rates and potential solutions. The ideas are relevant and logically developed. For instance, you identify lack of awareness and inconvenience as primary causes, and suggest education and infrastructure as solutions. The position is clear throughout. To reach a higher band, ensure that the development of ideas is more balanced; for example, the explanation of why people are 'careless' could be expanded further to provide more depth. Overall, the response is well-structured and fully satisfies the requirements of the task.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The essay is logically organized with a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Each paragraph has a central theme, such as the causes in the second paragraph and the solutions in the third. You use cohesive devices effectively, such as 'In addition', 'Moreover', 'Nevertheless', and 'Firstly'. However, there are minor issues with referencing and flow, such as 'improve this situations' (should be plural) and the slightly mechanical transition between sentences. The progression of ideas is clear, and the paragraphing is appropriate for the task.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.5

You demonstrate a sufficient range of vocabulary to discuss the topic with some precision. Phrases like 'pressing issue', 'financial incentives', and 'mitigated' are used appropriately. There are some minor errors in word choice and collocation, such as 'one of the prominent reason' (should be 'reasons') and 'governments and individuals intervention' (should be 'government and individual intervention'). While you attempt to use less common vocabulary, these occasional inaccuracies prevent a higher score. The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task and does not impede communication.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are several grammatical errors, such as 'rubbish is a pressing issue all around the word' (should be 'world'), 'people not fully understand' (missing auxiliary 'do'), and 'recyclable materials... often sent to landfills' (missing 'are'). Additionally, there are minor subject-verb agreement issues and article errors. While these errors are noticeable, they do not significantly impede the reader's understanding. To improve, focus on proofreading for basic verb forms and pluralization, and aim for more consistent control over complex sentence structures.

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