Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-13

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)

The rapid urbanization of large cities has intensified housing shortages, prompting a debate over the most effective solution. While some argue constructing tall apratments blocks the ultimate remedy. I believe that high rises are an essential componant urban housing startergies, they should not be considered the only or universally best solution.

One one hand, tall apartments blocks significant advantages in addressing severe housing deficiats. As land in metropolition areas become scares and increasingly expensive, high density vertical building maximizes the use of available space. By housing hundreds of families on a relatively small footprint, skyscrapers accommodate growing populations without requring further urban sprawl into surrounding green belts. Furthermore, high-rise living often improves the efficiency of muncipal services. Delivering utilities such as water, electricity, and waste managment, as well as public transportation networks, becomes far more cost-effective and centralized when populations are concentrated in high density vertical communities.

On the other hand, relying solely on tall apartmen blocks presents notable drawbacks.

High-rise developments can negatively impact resident' quality of life, particularly families. Living in cramped vertical units without adequate access to private outdoor spaces or green areas can lead to feelings of isolation and adversly affect mental health.

Additionally, high-density living often strains local infrastructure if the surrounding roads, schools, and healthcare facilities are not upgraded to match the population surge.resulting in severe traffic congestion and overcrowding.Moreover, large-scale high-rise projects can alter the architectural identity and character of historical neighborhoods, often destroying community cohesion.

To conclude, while tall aprtments blocks are powerfull and necessary tool for tackling hosuing shortages.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

Your position is clear: tall apartment blocks are important, but should not be treated as the only or universally best answer. You address both benefits and drawbacks, including efficient land use, service delivery, residents’ wellbeing, infrastructure pressure, and neighbourhood character. These are relevant reasons, but some are asserted rather than fully explained. For example, the point about mental health would be stronger with a brief explanation or example of how limited outdoor space affects residents. The conclusion also begins to restate your view but is incomplete, so it does not fully bring the argument together. Develop the key points more evenly and finish with a complete concluding sentence to make your response more fully supported.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a recognisable overall structure: an introduction, contrasting body paragraphs, and an attempted conclusion. The progression from advantages to disadvantages is logical, and signposts such as “On the other hand” help readers follow the argument. However, some connections are awkward or unclear. “One one hand” is an inaccurate transition, and the sentence beginning “Additionally” runs ideas together after “population surge,” making the relationship between infrastructure pressure and its consequences harder to follow. The final paragraph is also incomplete, which weakens the sense of closure. Use paragraphing consistently, check that each sentence links clearly to the previous one, and make transitions accurate rather than relying mainly on formulaic signposting.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of topic vocabulary, including “housing shortages,” “urban sprawl,” “green belts,” “municipal services,” and “architectural identity.” These choices help communicate the main ideas and show attempts to use less common language. However, spelling and word-choice errors sometimes reduce precision, as in “apratments,” “deficiats,” “scares,” and “powerfull.” There are also awkward combinations such as “high density vertical building” and “housing startergies.” These errors do not generally prevent understanding, but they make the writing less controlled. Proofread carefully and learn common collocations as complete phrases—for example, “high-density development” and “housing strategies”—so that ambitious vocabulary sounds natural and accurate.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mix of simple and complex structures, including a contrast clause in “While some argue…” and conditional phrasing in “if the surrounding roads, schools, and healthcare facilities are not upgraded.” Meaning is generally recoverable, but some grammatical errors and punctuation problems remain. The opening “While some argue constructing tall… the ultimate remedy” is a dependent clause without a complete main clause, while “I believe that high rises are an essential componant… they should not…” joins two independent ideas incorrectly. In the body, “As land… become” has subject–verb agreement trouble, and “resident’ quality” has an incorrect possessive form. Separate complete clauses with appropriate punctuation and check agreement, articles, and possessives during revision.

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