Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · IELTS Academic Practice Accelerator · 2026-10-14

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)

There is a constant debate among people over the past years that smoking should be made illegal because according to them it can cause serious illnesses. However , it is true that smoking can cause serious illnesses but making it illegal wont solve the problem overall. A strong piece of country economy depends on it . There is a need to understand why people smoke and what made them do that . It has quite many reasons but emotional , family and financial problems are major ones . So a balanced approach should be taken rather than a complete ban.

Imagine a man who is the only breadwinner in the family would have to cope with different challenges in daily life which includes the expenses like rent , bills , covering school fees and much more. While coping with these day to day challenges their is strong possibility that he might get depressed and can face some serious health issues . So to get some sort of relaxation from this hectic life he takes the step of smoking . So if we completely put ban on smoking then they will be left with no other suitable option . In result , they can take some severe steps that noone have thought it can be in any form . The industrial shutdown will eventually affect economy , people will get jobless eventually poverty rate will increase .

But on the other hand due to smoking people are diagnosed with some serious health issues like lungs cancer which is not curable. So to cope with these challenges government should introduce alternative products like nicotine gums and other smoke free nicotine devices so that their health is not compromised at serious level.

With this balanced approach we can solve the problem of smoking and eventually people health will be less affected . Putting a complete ban is not a solution as it will effect the economy of country and wont make people health better overall.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

Your position is clear: you oppose a complete ban and favour a balanced approach, and you address both the health risks and possible economic consequences. The example of a breadwinner turning to smoking under pressure gives one reason for your view, while the reference to lung cancer acknowledges the opposing concern. This covers the task, but some ideas are less fully developed than others. In particular, the claim that banning smoking would leave people with “no other suitable option” and lead to severe actions is unclear and needs explanation or evidence. The economic argument also focuses on industry and jobs without showing how these effects compare with the public-health costs. Develop these links and explain how your proposed alternatives would reduce harm.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The response has a recognisable progression: it introduces your position, explains personal and economic concerns, acknowledges health risks, and concludes by restating your view. Paragraphing broadly supports this structure, and signposts such as “However” and “on the other hand” help show contrast. At times, though, connections are mechanical or unclear. Repeated use of “So” to begin sentences makes the reasoning feel list-like, while “In result” does not clearly connect the preceding claim to the consequences that follow. The shift from individual stress to industrial shutdown also needs a more explicit link. Use a wider range of transitions selectively, and make each paragraph develop one main point in a clear sequence.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use enough topic-related vocabulary to communicate your main ideas, including “breadwinner,” “financial problems,” “alternative products,” and “smoke free nicotine devices.” There are also attempts at more specific language, such as “complete ban” and “serious health issues.” However, several word choices and collocations are inaccurate or awkward, which limits precision: “a strong piece of country economy,” “lungs cancer,” and “effect the economy” do not express the intended meanings naturally. Some phrases are also vague, including “severe steps” and “some sort of relaxation.” Aim to learn common collocations for health, employment, and economic effects, and choose precise terms rather than general expressions. Proofread spelling and word forms as well.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mixture of simple and complex sentences, including a conditional construction (“if we completely put ban on smoking”) and a relative clause (“a man who is the only breadwinner”). This shows some range, and the overall meaning is usually understandable. However, errors in sentence structure, agreement, articles, and punctuation recur. For example, “their is strong possibility” has an incorrect subject form and missing article, while “noone have thought it can be” has problems with agreement and clause structure. Several long sentences join separate ideas with commas, as in the discussion of joblessness and poverty, making relationships harder to follow. Practise accurate conditional sentences and clause boundaries, and check subject–verb agreement and articles when editing.

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