Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · IELTS Complete Catalyst · 2026-09-28

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)

Today, the discussion over whether people should focus more on their career or their hobbies and leisure interests. In my opinion, there should be a balance between the both.

On one hand, while understanding the advantages where work is the most important thing in life, it gets limited to only a single aspect one considers. When a person doing a job for five days a week think about spending some energy out of their professional life, it seems difficult. Consider the case of a person working, where he or she spends 80-90% of the time in office and when they get home after working they are left with no room to do anything, thus left with no time to even think about pursuing hobbies and leisure interests. As one grows older, jobs that align with personal interests can contribute to a more fulfilling life. A study revealed that individuals who work in their desired fields they are passionate about report higher levels of job satisfaction and overall well-being compared to those in less satisfying roles.

On the other hand, when we talk about less career oriented and being more driven towards the hobbies and liesure activities, alot of people connect it with relaxing and pursue personal interests. Spending time doing liesure activities can help improve personal relationships and help reduce excessive focus from the job to oneself. Moreover, Spending time on activities such as travelling, playing sports, reading or painting can help people reduce stress and maintain their mental well-being.

In my view, neither work nor leisure should completely dominate a person's life. While a rewarding career is important for financial independence and personal growth, leisure activities are equally valuable because they allow individuals to recharge and enjoy life outside the workplace, establishing a healthy balance between professional responsibilities and their personal interests.

In conclusion, some people work most their lives because they value financial security, whereas others prefer to devote more time to hobbies and leisure. I believe that a balanced lifestyle, in which work and personal interests are given appropriate attention, is the most sustainable approach.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

The response addresses all parts of the task by discussing both attitudes towards work and leisure, and clearly states a personal position in favour of a healthy balance. The ideas are generally relevant and extended, such as discussing the psychological impacts of overworking and the stress-reducing benefits of hobbies. However, some arguments in the first body paragraph are a bit repetitive and under-developed, with slightly loose phrasing like 'where work is the most important thing in life, it gets limited to only a single aspect one considers'. Overall, the task is addressed adequately, earning a Band 6.5.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a clear overall structure with an introduction, well-defined body paragraphs, a personal view, and a conclusion. Cohesive devices such as 'On the one hand', 'On the other hand', and 'Moreover' are used to guide the reader through the arguments. However, paragraphing and referencing are occasionally clumsy, and the opening sentence is an incomplete fragment ('Today, the discussion over whether people should focus more on their career or their hobbies and leisure interests.'). Paragraphing is sufficient and appropriate, and there is a clear logical progression overall, supporting a Band 6.5 rating.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully employing topic-specific terms such as 'financial independence', 'professional responsibilities', 'job satisfaction', and 'well-being'. There are several spelling and word choice errors, including 'liesure' instead of 'leisure' and 'alot' instead of 'a lot'. The writer attempts some less common vocabulary with varying degrees of accuracy, but communication is never impeded. These features align with the Band 6 descriptor.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The response exhibits a mix of simple and complex sentence forms. The writer attempts complex structures, such as conditional and relative clauses ('When a person doing a job for five days a week think about...'). However, there are grammatical inaccuracies and awkward phrasing, including subject-verb agreement errors ('a person... think', 'individuals who work... they are') and missing main verbs in introductory clauses. Punctuation is generally acceptable, and while errors are noticeable, they rarely impede overall communication, placing this response securely at Band 6.0.

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