Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · IELTS Complete Catalyst · 2026-09-04

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 6.0)

Many individuals consider work as the most crucial part of their life and take little interest in other activities whereas other people prefer spending time in their hobbies and leisure interests as compared to their jobs. In this essay, I will discuss both viewpoint and explain why professional life should not be the most significant part of your life.

In today's time, people prefer building their careers and utilize most of their time to enhance their skills. As we live in a fast paced environment where children start going to school from three years of age and continuously study till the age of 20 to 23 just to have an entry level job that pays the minimum wage. Additionally, the living expenses in countries are increasing causing burden on individuals to earn more. Consequently, people now focus on building careers to have a better standard of living due to which they have less time for other activities. For instance, a single mother works hard to pay for her kids and herself due to which she is tired and does not have free time for hobbies.

On the other hand, some individuals are more excited regarding their hobbies and activities they can do in their spare time as compared to their work. People with higher socioeconomic status have the freedom to choose what they want to do with their time. Moreover, children whose family belong to upper class have the access to resources and time for such hobbies. For example, a business person decides when they want to do work and when they want to spend time doing painting.

In my opinion, a human being needs time to relax and recover from the work they do. This is only possible when we have a balanced approach between work and our hobbies. We should not only indulge ourselves into work because it can effect our overall well-being and at the same time we should not only focus on our leisure interests as it can effect our bread and butter.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response addresses all parts of the prompt, discussing both attitudes and providing a clear personal opinion. The ideas are relevant, such as the economic pressure driving career focus and the role of socioeconomic status in leisure time. However, the development is somewhat limited. For instance, the example of the 'single mother' is a good start but could be expanded to better illustrate the societal pressure mentioned. The conclusion is clear, but the argument could be more nuanced by exploring the potential benefits of career-focused lives beyond just economic necessity. Overall, the response is well-structured and meets the requirements of the task.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The essay is logically organized with a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Each paragraph has a central theme. Cohesive devices such as 'In today's time,' 'Additionally,' 'Consequently,' and 'On the other hand' are used to guide the reader. However, some transitions feel slightly mechanical, and the referencing could be more sophisticated. For example, the link between the second and third paragraphs could be smoother to create a more cohesive flow between the two opposing viewpoints. Paragraphing is used appropriately, and the progression of ideas is generally easy to follow throughout the text.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is adequate for the task, allowing the writer to express ideas clearly. There are attempts to use less common vocabulary, such as 'socioeconomic status' and 'fast paced environment.' However, there are some minor inaccuracies in word choice and collocation, such as 'indulge ourselves into work' (should be 'indulge in') and 'effect our bread and butter' (should be 'affect'). While these errors do not impede communication, they prevent the essay from reaching a higher band. A wider range of precise, academic vocabulary would strengthen the overall impact of the arguments.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There is a good attempt at using complex sentences, such as 'As we live in a fast paced environment where children start going to school...'. However, there are persistent grammatical errors, particularly with verb forms and prepositions, such as 'children whose family belong' (should be 'families belong') and 'effect' used instead of 'affect' twice. While these errors are noticeable, they do not cause difficulty for the reader. To improve, the student should focus on subject-verb agreement and the correct usage of commonly confused words.

See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.

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