Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-23

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Some people believe that international sports events, such as The Olympics or the Football World Cup, are a good way to bring countries together. Others say that these events create competition, not friendship, between countries.

Discuss both these views and give your own opinion.

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

Student answer (Band 5.5)

Many believe that sports events between the nations bring them close. While some argue that it creates the sense of competition between the countries. I firmly believe that the events bring the countries together as it is just a game played for fun, instead of competing they exchange botherhood and friendiness.

On the one hand, many individuals think that the international events are the source of competition between nations. Those events are the best ways to illustrate the standard and quality of the sport they practise. They tend to display the top brands and equipment in the field. They compete to show their talent and gears in front to the world. For instance, In the Football World Cup, all the international teams showcase their brands and quality of gears they wear, they take everything personally and act like they are fighting with each other to demonstrate who has the top quality and standard.

In contrast, for most of the players, either the match is national or international, it won't matter at all, they are there to play a friendly game. The players attend a competition to participate and learn more about their specific game. Primarily, it's their hobby and they try to become better each day learning from friends and try to deliver their best performance regardless of what position they get. It helps them to share their knowledge and increase friendship. In particular, players participating in the Olympics learn and share tremendous amount of experience from their fellow compitetor, even if they are competing for the prize , they respect each other and share joy and information with each other.

In conclusion, international events being a competition, it brings people and nations together because of the nature of professional players who participate in those events for learning more about the game with other nations.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

The response addresses both views required by the prompt and presents a clear personal position stating that sports bring countries together. Ideas are generally relevant, but the development of the arguments tends to be somewhat repetitive and superficial. For instance, the paragraph discussing the competitive view mentions that teams 'display the top brands and equipment' and 'act like they are fighting,' which is a slightly narrow interpretation of international sports competition. The counter-argument about players treating it as a hobby is better supported with examples like learning from fellow competitors, but overall the ideas lack the extension and depth expected at higher band levels. However, all parts of the prompt are covered, and a consistent position is maintained throughout the essay. This performance aligns best with Band 6.0 descriptors.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The essay is coherent overall with a clear logical arrangement, dividing ideas into a well-defined introduction, two body paragraphs representing opposing views, and a brief conclusion. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate distinct concepts. However, cohesion at the sentence level is occasionally faulty or mechanical. For example, the transition 'In contrast, for most of the players...' introduces a shift, but the sentence structure runs on with comma splices, making the logical progression slightly bumpy in places. Referencing and cohesive devices such as 'On the one hand' and 'In conclusion' are present but sometimes overused or awkwardly integrated, such as the fragment 'In conclusion, international events being a competition, it brings...' which lacks smooth grammatical connection. Consequently, a score of 6.0 is appropriate.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, attempting some less common phrases such as 'international events,' 'professional players,' and 'tremendous amount of experience.' However, there are notable lexical inaccuracies, awkward word choices, and spelling errors throughout the text. For instance, the writer uses 'botherhood' instead of 'brotherhood,' 'friendiness' instead of 'friendliness,' and 'compitetor' instead of 'competitor.' Furthermore, phrases like 'gear and equipment' are repeated and slightly misused in the context of international sports competition. While the meaning remains clear despite these errors, the frequent lexical slips prevent the response from achieving a higher band, placing it firmly at Band 5.5.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The response demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, attempting relative clauses and conditional structures. However, grammatical control is inconsistent, and numerous errors are present. There are frequent punctuation and sentence boundary issues, such as comma splices and fragment sentences, for example: 'While some argue that it creates the sense of competition between the countries. I firmly believe...' Other errors include subject-verb agreement and article usage, such as 'bring the nations close' and 'in front to the world.' Additionally, run-on sentences like 'Primarily, it's their hobby and they try to become better each day learning from friends and try to deliver their best performance...' reduce the clarity of complex thoughts. These errors occasionally cause slight strain for the reader, fitting the Band 5.0 descriptor profile.

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

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