Band 4.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 4.0 · IELTS Complete Catalyst · 2026-11-12

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Some people regard work as the most important thing in life and have little interest in anything else. Other people are more enthusiastic about their hobbies and leisure interests than their jobs.

Discuss both these attitudes 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 4.0)

While some people argue that spending most of time on work makes a person more productive others contend to spending time on other activities and hobbies will make the person connected to the world more.

In my view, both are equally important. Work is important but spending time on hobbies and activities is also important. It keeps your life balanced. You work where it is necessary and indulge in other activities and hobbies to wind off from workload depression.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 3.0

The response identifies both broad attitudes—prioritising work and valuing hobbies—and gives a clear personal view that both matter. It also briefly explains that leisure can help people maintain balance. However, the discussion is extremely limited: the work-focused attitude is not explained or supported, and the benefits of hobbies are asserted rather than developed with reasons or examples. The phrase “more productive” introduces an idea, but it is not explored. The response also falls 171 words short of the required minimum, leaving the task substantially incomplete. To strengthen the answer, explain each attitude in a separate developed paragraph, support the points with relevant examples, and make the conclusion follow from that discussion.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.5

There is a basic, understandable sequence: the opening sentence introduces the two views, and the next paragraph gives your opinion and a brief reason. The transition “In my view” clearly signals your position. However, the response has only two short paragraphs and does not develop a logical progression between the two attitudes and your own view. The repeated statement that work and hobbies are both important also limits progression, while links between ideas are sparse. Organise the essay into an introduction, a paragraph explaining the work-centred view, a paragraph explaining the leisure-centred view, and a conclusion. Use clear links to show how each explanation supports your balanced position.

Lexical Resource: Band 4.5

You use some relevant vocabulary, including “productive,” “hobbies,” “balanced,” and “workload,” so the main topic is generally clear. There is also an attempt to express ideas beyond very basic statements, such as describing leisure as a way to recover from work pressure. However, the range is narrow and several choices or combinations are inaccurate or unnatural: “contend to spending,” “connected to the world more,” and “wind off from workload depression” do not express the intended meanings clearly. Repetition of “important,” “activities,” and “hobbies” further limits flexibility. Build a more precise topic vocabulary and check common collocations; for example, explain how leisure helps people “relieve work-related stress” or “maintain social connections.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 4.5

The response includes a complex opening sentence with a contrast between “some people” and “others,” and the short sentences that follow are mostly easy to understand. However, control is inconsistent in the longer structure: “spending most of time on work makes a person more productive others contend…” needs clearer sentence boundaries and grammatical linking, while “contend to spending” uses an incorrect verb pattern. The sentence “It keeps your life balanced” also shifts from the general third-person discussion to “your,” making the reference less consistent. Most of the response relies on simple sentence forms, so there is little evidence of a wider range. Practise accurate contrast clauses and verb patterns, and vary sentence structures while keeping each sentence complete and clearly punctuated.

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