Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · IELTS Complete Catalyst · 2026-07-31

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

In some societies, stress is now regarded as a major problem, and it is thought that people suffer from more stress than they did in the past. However, others feel that the amount of stress people have today is exaggerated. They say that previous generations were under more pressure, but the idea of suffering from stress did not exist.

Discuss both these views and give your own opinion.

You should use your own ideas, knowledge and experience and support your arguments with examples and relevant evidence.

Student answer (Band 6.5)

Globally, stress is now recognized as a major challenge, and it is believed that individuals bear more stress now as compared to the past. Nevertheless, another group of people think that stress is overstated in the contemporary era. They argue that previous generations were under more strain, but they were unfamiliar with the concept of stress. I completely agree with the first stance.

On the one hand, proponents says that individuals suffer from more stress now. Today, the world has become so much busy. There is a dramatical reduction in the time period of rest among people. People have to work longer hours as compared to people in past in order to run their family. Also, pressure in each field has increased due to large scale competition. For instance, a jobholder is given more work than how much it is payed for, which causes stress.

On the other hand, opponents explain that there was more stress in the past. Ancestors had to work day and night in fields for crop production in severe weather conditions. There were no machineries for them which can complete their multiple works. The only thing is that they did not know what the term ''stress'' is. For example, my ancestors had to invest their whole day in fields during the season of crops without resting for a single time.

In my opinion, also people in past had to work very hard but they had faced less pressure of work and study as compared to us due to rise in competition in every aspect of life's success.

In conclusion, there is debate over stress rates in past and present. Some say that ancestors says that they faced more pressure as they did not have technology to help them and some say the stress rate is higher currently due to rise in contention. I believe that stress is more common in modern time as I face that in my academic life.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The response addresses all parts of the prompt, including both views and a clear personal opinion. The position is consistent throughout the essay. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited. For instance, the argument regarding modern stress is supported by general statements like 'the world has become so much busy' rather than specific, well-elaborated examples. The comparison between past and present is clear, but the analysis remains at a surface level. To reach a higher band, you should provide more depth in your reasoning and ensure that your personal opinion is integrated more smoothly into the body paragraphs rather than just stated in the introduction and conclusion.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The essay is logically organized into clear paragraphs, each with a distinct focus. Cohesive devices are used, such as 'On the one hand', 'On the other hand', and 'In conclusion', which help guide the reader. However, some transitions are mechanical or slightly repetitive. For example, the use of 'also' at the start of the fourth paragraph is a bit abrupt. Additionally, referencing is occasionally imprecise, such as in the final paragraph where the summary of the two views is slightly muddled. Improving the variety of linking words and ensuring smoother transitions between sentences would enhance the flow of your writing.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.5

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'contemporary era', 'proponents', and 'contention'. However, there are several instances of awkward word choice and collocation errors, such as 'dramatical reduction' (should be 'dramatic'), 'how much it is payed for' (should be 'what it pays'), and 'rise in contention' (which is not the best fit for 'competition'). While these errors do not impede communication, they highlight a need for more precise vocabulary usage. Expanding your range of collocations and checking word forms will help you achieve a higher score.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.5

The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While you attempt complex sentences, there are frequent grammatical errors, such as 'proponents says' (subject-verb agreement), 'people in past' (missing article), and 'there were no machineries' (machinery is uncountable). Punctuation is generally functional, but some phrasing is unnatural, such as 'without resting for a single time'. To improve, focus on subject-verb agreement, the correct use of articles, and the distinction between countable and uncountable nouns. Increasing the frequency of error-free complex sentences will be key to moving up to a Band 7.

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