Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · IELTS Momentum Workout · 2026-09-14

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Concern for the environment is growing and more and more people are choosing to recycle. But some people suggest that recycling is not enough. They believe we need to consume less.

Discuss both these views and give your own opinion.

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

Student answer (Band 6.5)

There is no doubt that environmental issues have became a major global concern. While many people thint that recycling is the key solution, others argue that reducing overall consumption is more important. While opinions remain divided, I firmly contend that both approaches are necessary, but cutting down consumption is more effective in the long run. On the first hand, recycling is a practical and positive step. The foremost justification lies in the fact that it helps o reduce the amount of waste that goes to landfills and conserves natural resoruces. By reprocessing the materials such as paper,glass, and metals, we reduce the volume of waste sent to landfills and decrease the demand for virign resources. For instance, recycling one ton of paper can save approximately 17 trees, which directly mitigates deforestation. Furthermore, many countries now have recycling programs and bins in public places, which makes it easy for citizens to participate. This raises environmental awareness and gives people of responsibility. Therefore, recycling plays an important role in managing waste. On the other hand, critics argue that recycling alone cannot solve the problem because it does not address the root cause, overconsumption. Beyond this, it is important to recognize that even if we recycle, the process itself requires energy and water, and not all the materials can be recycled indefinately. This can primarily be attributed to the sheer volume of products we buy, use, and throw away continues to grow. For instance, fast fashion and single-use packaging create massive amounts of waste regardless of recycling rates. For these reasons, I remain firmly convinced that recycling is important but it should be seen as the last step, not the first. While recycling is beneficial and should be encouraged, it is not enough on its own. We must also focus on consuming less to truly protect the environment.A meaningful reduction is consumption is essential if we are to address environmental challenges at their source.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The student successfully addresses all parts of the task by discussing both the view that recycling is crucial and the perspective that we need to consume less. A clear position is established early on and maintained throughout the essay, arguing that while both approaches are important, consuming less is more effective in the long run. Ideas are well-developed and supported with relevant examples, such as the statistic regarding paper recycling and the mention of fast fashion. The arguments are extended appropriately, leading to a well-rounded discussion that fully meets the requirements for this criterion.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The response demonstrates a clear logical organisation and progression throughout. The essay is divided into logical paragraphs, with an introduction, body paragraphs addressing each viewpoint, and a clear conclusion. Cohesive devices such as 'While opinions remain divided', 'On the first hand', 'Furthermore', and 'On the other hand' are used to guide the reader through the arguments. Although 'On the first hand' is a slight collocation slip (typically 'On the one hand'), overall referencing and paragraphing are managed sufficiently and appropriately, maintaining a coherent overall arrangement.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The writer demonstrates a sufficient range of vocabulary with some flexibility and precision, employing less common items such as 'mitigates deforestation', 'root cause', and 'overconsumption'. However, there are a few noticeable spelling and word-choice errors, such as 'became' instead of 'become', 'thint' instead of 'think', 'resoruces' instead of 'resources', 'virign' instead of 'virgin', 'indefinately' instead of 'indefinitely', and the grammatical slip 'gives people of responsibility'. Despite these inaccuracies, the vocabulary is adequate for the task and communication is never impeded.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The student employs a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating attempts at varied structures such as concessive clauses ('While many people think that...') and relative clauses ('...which makes it easy for citizens to participate'). There are several grammatical errors present, such as 'environmental issues have became' (tense error), 'helps o reduce' (typo/preposition slip), and 'the sheer volume of products we buy, use, and throw away continues to grow' (unbalanced clause structure). Punctuation is generally acceptable, and while errors persist, they do not impede communication.

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