Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-08-21

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

The best way to provide enough homes in large cities is to build tall apartment blocks.

To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement?

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

Student answer (Band 6.0)

In the recent decades, apartment living has emerged as a significant issue of discussion with people holding different opinions. In many developed nations like Japan, China where people prefer to live in apartments than living in individual compact homes saves a lot more space for other purposes. They use the land saved for other constructive purposes like building parks, constructing a dam and many other useful ways.

However, In a country like India, many people prefer to purchase a plot of land and construct an individual house according to their preferences. This type of housing generally requires more land than apartment buildings. Similarly, when everyone chooses to build a house like this, the overall residential area increases. On the other hand, we have a large number of people migrating from one place to another place in search of work and better opportunities. Majorly, people move to capital cities and find places to stay. Due to this overcrowding of people, the situation pushes the government to provide land to the people for accommodation. This resulted in urban overcrowding that leads to the conversion of ponds, lakes and agricultural lands into residential plots.

The citizens, comfortably buy plots and construct individual houses as per their plans to live. Later, when they encounter any natural calamities like flood, tsunami or cyclone, the water gets stagnant in the houses that completely disturbs the daily lives of people. Therefore, promoting apartment living could help reduce pressure on land, preserve natural ecosystems and limit uncontrolled urban expansion

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response addresses the prompt by discussing the benefits of apartment living versus individual houses. However, the position is not clearly stated in the introduction; it emerges only in the final sentence. While the arguments regarding land use and environmental impact are relevant, the development is somewhat uneven. The comparison between Japan/China and India is interesting but lacks a clear link to the central argument of whether tall apartment blocks are the 'best' way to provide homes. To improve, ensure your stance is explicit from the start and provide more direct evidence supporting why high-density housing is superior to other urban planning solutions.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay is organised into three paragraphs, which is a logical structure. However, the use of cohesive devices is sometimes mechanical or slightly awkward, such as 'Majorly' to start a sentence or the abrupt transition between the second and third paragraphs. Referencing is generally clear, but the flow between ideas could be smoother. For instance, the transition from the discussion of Indian housing preferences to the issue of migration feels a bit disjointed. Improving the variety of linking words and ensuring that each paragraph has a clear topic sentence would enhance the overall progression of ideas.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, allowing the writer to convey their meaning clearly. There are some attempts at less common vocabulary, such as 'natural calamities' and 'stagnant', which are used correctly. However, there are instances of slightly unnatural word choices or phrasing, such as 'In the recent decades' (should be 'In recent decades') and 'Majorly' (which is informal and not ideal for an academic essay). To reach a higher band, focus on using more precise collocations and avoiding informal or non-standard adverbial usage.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are several grammatical errors that persist throughout the text. Examples include 'people prefer to live in apartments than living in individual compact homes' (inconsistent comparison), 'The citizens, comfortably buy plots' (unnecessary comma), and 'the water gets stagnant in the houses that completely disturbs' (subject-verb agreement/relative clause issues). While these errors do not impede communication, they occur frequently enough to prevent a higher score. Focusing on subject-verb agreement and correct preposition usage would be beneficial.

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

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