Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-08-31

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 recent years,many major cities are facing a serious shortage of housing because the population is growing rapidly.some people believe that constructing high-rise apartment buildings is the best way to solve this problem.in my opinion, i partially agree with this view because tall buildings save land space, but there are also some drawbacks that need to be considered.

on the one hand, building tall apartment blocks is an affective way to deal with lack of land in big cities. when cities build vertically, they cant fit many families into a single building instead of using up large areas of land for individual houses.for example, in crowded cities like Singapore, high-rise flats allow thousands of people to live near their workplaces and access public transport easily.therefore, vertical housing helps local governments accommodate a large number of citizens in small urban areas.

on the other hand, relying only on tall buildings creates several problems. constructing high-rise apartment costs a lot of money, which often makes these homes too expensive for normal families to buy or rent. in addition, having too many people living in one small area can cause heavy traffic congestion and put extra pressure on public facilities like schools and hospitals. instead of just building tall apartments, governments should also improve transport links so people can live in suburban regions comfortably.

in conclusion, although building tall apartment blocks is a good way to manage urban housing shortages, it is not the only option. cities should combine high-rise housing with suburban development to create better living conditions for everyone.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The response addresses all parts of the prompt, providing a clear position that is maintained throughout. The arguments are relevant, with the benefits of land efficiency and the drawbacks of cost and infrastructure pressure being well-supported. The example of Singapore is effective in illustrating the point about vertical housing. To reach a higher band, the development of ideas could be more nuanced; for instance, exploring the social impact of high-rise living or specific urban planning policies would add greater depth to the argument.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay is logically organized with a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and conclusion. Cohesive devices such as 'on the one hand', 'in addition', and 'therefore' are used appropriately to guide the reader. However, the paragraphing is slightly hindered by the lack of capitalization at the start of sentences (e.g., 'in recent years', 'some people'), which makes the text appear less professional. While the progression of ideas is clear, the transition between the benefits and drawbacks could be smoother to enhance the overall flow.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, with some good collocations like 'urban housing shortages' and 'public facilities'. However, there are instances of imprecise word choice, such as 'affective' instead of 'effective', and 'cant fit' which is informal. The range of vocabulary is sufficient to convey meaning clearly, but it lacks the sophistication and variety of less common lexical items required for higher bands. Improving spelling and avoiding informal contractions would significantly improve the quality of the writing.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The essay demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are frequent errors in punctuation and capitalization, such as missing spaces after periods and lowercase letters at the start of sentences. There are also minor grammatical slips, such as 'high-rise apartment costs a lot' (should be 'costs' or 'the cost of... is high'). These errors do not impede communication, but they do indicate a need for more careful proofreading and better control over sentence-level mechanics.

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

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