Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-20

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Some people argue that primary schools focus too much on formal learning.

To what extent do you agree with this opinion?

How important do you think it is for children to play as well as learn in the primary school classroom?

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

Student answer (Band 6.0)

Students in primary schools are generally young children rather than teenagers, and I belive that this is a crucial stage in thier development. At this age, they should not only acquire academic knowledge but also have opportunities to develop their creativity, independence and social skills. Therefore, I belive that formal learning is foundation for their future education. Learning how to read, write and solve mathematical problems, for instance,e gives them the basic skills they will need later on.

However, I do not think that children should spend their entire schooldays sitting at a desk and listenning to their teachers. This could become monotonous and may negatively affect their concentration, especially since young children generally have a shorter attention span than elder students. For this reason, incorporation playful and interactive activities into lessons could be highly beneficial. Educational games, for example, could enable children to develop their knowledge while remaining engaged and motivated. In this way, play would not necessarily replace formal leaarning, but rather complement it.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0

The student addresses the prompt by discussing the role of formal learning as a foundation and arguing that play is also necessary to maintain engagement. However, the response is severely limited by its length. The text contains only 166 words, which falls significantly short of the 250-word minimum required for Academic Task 2. Consequently, the ideas are under-developed and lack the extension and specific examples needed to fully explore both questions regarding the extent of agreement and the importance of play. While the writer takes a clear position, the under-length nature of the response restricts it to a Band 5.0 for Task Achievement.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay demonstrates a basic logical progression, moving from the importance of formal learning in the first paragraph to the complementary role of play in the second. Cohesive devices such as 'Therefore', 'for instance', 'However', and 'for example' are used adequately to connect ideas, though paragraphing is limited to just two main blocks. Referencing is generally clear, as seen in 'this is a crucial stage' and 'For this reason'. Although the text is brief, the overall arrangement is coherent enough to satisfy the requirements for Band 6.0 in this criterion.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The student demonstrates an adequate vocabulary for the task, successfully using terms such as 'crucial stage', 'acquire academic knowledge', 'monotonous', and 'complement'. However, there are notable spelling errors, including 'belive' (used twice) and 'thier', as well as typographical slips like 'listenning' and 'leaarning'. The range of vocabulary is sufficient to convey the writer's ideas clearly, but the presence of these basic spelling mistakes and occasional reliance on simpler phrasing prevents the score from reaching a higher band. Overall, the lexical resource is characteristic of a Band 6.0 performance.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, such as conditional and subordinate clauses ('Students in primary schools are generally young children rather than teenagers, and I belive that...'). There are several grammatical and mechanical errors, including spelling mistakes ('belive', 'thier', 'listenning', 'leaarning', 'elder' instead of 'younger' students) and minor punctuation issues. Despite these errors, the sentence structures are reasonably clear and communication is not impeded. The grammatical control is solid enough to meet the descriptors for a Band 6.0.

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

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