Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-10-23

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Write about the following topic:

In many countries, family members work together in their family business.

Do you think family businesses have more advantages than disadvantages?

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

Student answer (Band 6.5)

In many countries, it is common for family members to work together and run a business. Although this arrangement can lead to disputes, I believe that family business has more advantages than disadvantages, because of trust, co-operation and dividing the responsibilities among the family members.

One major advantage of family business is strong level of trust among the family members. Since they know each other very well, they can communicate better, make decisions quickly and work towards common goal. Furthermore, family members are more committed towards the success of the business because it's profit benefits the entire family. For example a family business of a restaurant, may work together and divide the duties like cooking, serving, customer handling, service, feedback and finance.

However family business can also have certain disadvantages. Conflicts or disagreement between the family can spoil professional relationship, making it difficult to resolve and taking sides. In addition some family members might expect senior position considering age, but having no particular skill related to the business, this may effect the business's profit. For instance if an inexperienced person is appointed as manager for the restaurant, instead of a more qualified and skilled person in the family, the business may suffer from poor decision and poor management.

In conclusion, family business might have conflict and disputes but it has more advantages than disadvantages. Trust, shared responsibilities and a common goal can contribute significantly to business success, provided that family members maintain professional boundaries and assign roles based on individual skills and abilities not age wise.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.0

Your position is clear from the introduction to the conclusion: you believe family businesses have more advantages, while acknowledging possible disputes. You address both sides and support your points with relevant examples, particularly the restaurant roles and the risk of appointing an inexperienced manager. This fits a response that covers the task and extends its main ideas. To strengthen the discussion further, develop the examples with more specific consequences or explanation. For instance, the list of restaurant duties shows how work can be divided, but you could explain how this improves efficiency or service. The point about family members’ commitment is also relevant, though it would benefit from a concrete illustration rather than a general claim.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.0

The essay has a clear, effective structure: an introduction states your view, separate body paragraphs discuss advantages and disadvantages, and the conclusion restates your position. Ideas progress logically, and linking expressions such as “Furthermore,” “However,” and “In conclusion” help guide the reader. The contrast between trust and commitment on one side and conflict or unsuitable appointments on the other is easy to follow. Some connections could be made more smoothly, however. The restaurant example is introduced as support for shared responsibilities, but its long list of duties makes the point feel more like an inventory than a developed explanation. Use clearer referencing and explain how each example supports the paragraph’s main claim, while avoiding reliance on familiar transition phrases alone.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of vocabulary for the topic, including “committed,” “professional boundaries,” “inexperienced,” and “qualified and skilled.” These choices communicate the main ideas clearly, and the reader can understand your argument throughout. However, some word choices and collocations are imprecise or repetitive, which limits the flexibility and naturalness of the vocabulary. For example, “strong level of trust” would be more naturally expressed as “a high level of trust,” while “it’s profit benefits the entire family” is unclear and awkward. “Customer handling” and “poor decision” also need more idiomatic or precise phrasing. Aim to use accurate collocations and vary repeated terms such as “business” and “family members”; careful editing for word forms and spelling will also improve control.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.5

You use a mix of simple and complex structures, including a concessive opening (“Although this arrangement can lead to disputes”) and conditional phrasing in the conclusion (“provided that family members maintain…”). Most sentences convey their meaning clearly, and the errors do not prevent understanding. Some grammatical inaccuracies remain, particularly with articles, agreement, and sentence construction. Examples include “strong level of trust” (which needs an article), “work towards common goal,” and “a family business of a restaurant, may work together,” where the subject and punctuation are problematic. The final phrase “not age wise” also needs a more grammatical construction. To move beyond this level, check articles and singular/plural agreement systematically, and make sure each sentence has a clear subject and a well-formed main clause.

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