Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-08-21

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Some people believe that it is best to accept a bad situation, such as an unsatisfactory job or shortage of money. Others argue that it is better to try and improve such situations.

Discuss both these views and give your own opinion.

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

Student answer (Band 6.5)

Some people believe that it is best to accept a bad situation, such as an unsatisfactory job or shortage of money. Others argue that it is better to try and improve such situations.

Discuss both these views and give your own opinion.

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

People have different opinions about whether acceptance is the best way to overcome poor circumstances including unsatisfactory job and lack of money, or making an effort is best way to enhance such circumstances. While there are good reasons for them to endure the unfavourable situations and become practical, I believe that people should take responsible steps for better situations.

On the one hand, some people argue that accepting difficult circumstances is beneficial in certain situations. The main reason for this that some difficult situation is temporary, it cannot be change immediately; Therefore, sometimes accepting bad situation can help people to overcome the stress, remain calm and mentally stable. For example, a person may continue work in low-paid job because of financial burden of family. Hence, tolerating situation such as jobs that are not favourable or lack of money, financial stress of family, constraint people to think more practical.

On the other hand, others believe that individuals should take appropriate step for improving tough situations. The primary argument here is efforts to improve circumstances because it might improve peoples’ quality of life. While exploring people might get satisfactory job, also people can develop new skills. For instance, a person can do job with studying part time, which will help them to have better job opportunity. Hence, taking a better step to improve a bad situation can help people to develop new skills and successful person.

In conclusion, although it is true that a accepting a bad situation is good to think practical and overcome stress, I firmly believe that making an effort to improve such situations can create new opportunity, financial security and satisfactory life.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The response addresses all parts of the prompt, discussing both views and providing a clear personal opinion. The ideas are relevant and generally well-supported, although the development in the second body paragraph could be more nuanced. For example, the argument about 'studying part-time' is a good practical example, but the explanation of why this leads to a 'successful person' is slightly underdeveloped. The position is consistent throughout the essay. To reach a higher band, ensure that the supporting examples are more fully explored to demonstrate a deeper level of critical thinking regarding the trade-offs between acceptance and proactive change.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The essay is logically organized with a clear introduction, two body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Cohesive devices such as 'On the one hand', 'On the other hand', and 'For instance' are used effectively to guide the reader. However, there are some minor issues with mechanical cohesion, such as the slightly awkward transition 'While exploring people might get satisfactory job'. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate the two viewpoints. The progression of ideas is generally clear, though some sentences feel slightly disjointed due to minor grammatical errors that affect the flow of information.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The vocabulary is adequate for the task, allowing the student to express their ideas clearly. There is an attempt to use topic-specific vocabulary such as 'unfavourable situations', 'financial burden', and 'financial security'. However, there are some inaccuracies in word choice and collocation, such as 'constraint people to think more practical' (should be 'constrains people to think more practically') and 'taking a better step' (should be 'taking proactive steps'). The range is sufficient to convey meaning, but lacks the precision and flexibility required for a higher band score.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The student uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are frequent grammatical errors, particularly with articles ('a unsatisfactory job', 'a bad situation'), subject-verb agreement ('some difficult situation is'), and punctuation (the semicolon usage is incorrect). Some sentences are also missing necessary prepositions or articles, which makes the writing feel slightly unpolished. While these errors do not impede communication, they occur frequently enough to prevent a higher score. Focusing on proofreading for basic grammatical accuracy would significantly improve the quality of the writing.

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

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