Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · IELTS Academic Practice Accelerator · 2026-10-13

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Smoking can cause serious illnesses and should be made illegal.

To what extent do you agree?

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

Student answer (Band 6.0)

In contemporary society, the issue of smoking has become prevalent, sparking considerable debate. People believe that using tobacco can be a major cause of harmful diseases and it should be banned. From my perspective, I strongly agree with this statement. Smoking causes severe health problems like cancer and heart disease, make it completely illegal.

On one hand, it is inevitable that smoking causes numerous health disorders like cancer, kidney failure, stroke, heart disease and chronic pulmonary disease. Even take a puff of cigeratte is dangerous to humans health. Additionally, it should must ban on public areas because non-smokers also face short and difficulty in breathing because passive smoking is effect to others organs, tissues and cell same as smoker. Moreover, public health systems bear massive financial burdens treating smoking-related illnesses.

On the other hand, it is profoundly a paradoxical issue with inevitable challenges. Nowdays, adults argue they have the right to choose what to put in their bodies, provided it does not directly harm others in prohibited areas. Nicotine is highly addictive. Banning it criminalizes millions of users rather than treating the addiction as a public health issue. Policies like heavy taxation, plain packaging, smoke-free zones, and access to cessation programs such as nicotine replacement therapy often reduce smoking rates more effectively than bans.

To conclude, the government and individuals alike to ensure that this problem is not marginalized and it is an integral part of social framework to gain a sustainable solution. They should make strict laws, high taxation and punishment with heavy fine.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

Your position is clear from the introduction: you strongly agree that smoking should be illegal, and you give relevant reasons, including serious illness, harm to non-smokers, and pressure on health services. The discussion also recognises a counterargument—that adults should be free to choose—and explains why prohibition may criminalise addiction. However, the response does not fully resolve the tension between supporting a ban and recommending measures such as taxation, smoke-free zones, and cessation programmes. The conclusion calls for strict laws and fines but does not clarify whether you still advocate making smoking entirely illegal. Develop and support this central position more consistently, and explain how your proposed policies follow from it.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, two body paragraphs presenting different considerations, and a conclusion. Linking phrases such as “On one hand,” “Additionally,” and “To conclude” help signal the stages of the argument. However, some connections are mechanical, and the progression is not always clear. The second body paragraph moves from personal choice to addiction and then to alternative policies without fully explaining how each point relates to your position. The conclusion’s reference to making the issue “an integral part of social framework” is also difficult to connect to the preceding argument. Use clearer topic sentences and explicit transitions to show how each reason supports or qualifies your view.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of topic vocabulary, including “passive smoking,” “public health systems,” “highly addictive,” “plain packaging,” and “nicotine replacement therapy.” These terms help you discuss health effects and policy options, and the meaning is generally understandable. There are, however, some inaccurate or unnatural choices that reduce precision, such as “it is profoundly a paradoxical issue,” “short and difficulty in breathing,” and “punishment with heavy fine.” Spelling errors such as “cigeratte” and “Nowdays” also affect the overall impression. Aim for natural collocations and check spelling carefully; for example, describe breathing problems as “shortness of breath” and refer to “substantial fines.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and more complex sentence forms, including a concession about adults’ freedom of choice and a sentence explaining that prohibition may criminalise users. The main ideas remain understandable, but some grammatical errors occur in key sentences. For example, “Smoking causes severe health problems … make it completely illegal” has an incomplete connection between the clauses, while “it should must ban” combines incompatible verb forms. There are also errors in “Even take a puff” and “the government and individuals alike to ensure,” where the sentence structure is incomplete. Practise forming complete clauses and controlling modal verbs, subject–verb agreement, and articles. More accurate sentence construction would make your argument easier to follow.

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