Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 13 · 2026-10-02

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Living in a country where you have to speak a foreign language can cause serious social problems, as well as practical problems.

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)

There is an ongoing debate about whether we live in a foreign country we have to speak the language of the specific country and whether it will cause social as well as practical problems. I totally agree with this statement because living in a foreign country can sometimes be very hard.

The main reason for this is that when we live in a foreign country we have to speak its language and most of the time it is very difficult to speak a foreign language. Firstly, if we plan to move abroad we should learn the language of that country. For instance, if some people want to go to Malaysia they should learn the language first to survive in that country. After this, they still experience social difficulties. Furthermore, they cannot easily communicate with Malaysian people and some people can also face racism in a foreign country. For example, my brother moved to Saudi Arabia and he had toothache but he was unable to tell the dentist the actual problem because he was not proficient in Arabic. Some people also struggle to adapt to cultural differences in a foreign country.

Another significant reason is that a person also has to face a lot of practical problems. If students want to pursue higher education, they may encounter significant challenges due to the language. People may also encounter practical difficulties when they want to get employed because a company will always give priority to locals rather than foreign employees.

To conclude, I completely believe that living in a foreign country can cause serious social as well as practical problems because we have to speak a foreign language.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

The response successfully addresses all parts of the prompt by discussing both the social and practical problems of living in a foreign country where a foreign language must be spoken. Your position is clear throughout the essay, beginning with the introduction and reaffirming in the conclusion. However, some ideas are more fully developed than others. For example, while the social problem regarding your brother experiencing a toothache in Saudi Arabia due to an inability to speak Arabic is well supported with a clear personal example, other points remain somewhat general and under-developed, such as the brief mention of cultural differences or employment challenges. To move to a higher level, you should extend and fully explain all your main points with deeper elaboration and specific examples rather than listing them briefly.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The essay demonstrates a coherent overall arrangement with a clear logical progression from introduction to body paragraphs and a concluding summary. Paragraphing is used sufficiently to separate the social and practical problems into distinct sections. However, cohesion is at times mechanical or repetitive, relying heavily on transitional phrases like 'Firstly', 'After this', 'Furthermore', and 'Another significant reason'. Referencing is also occasionally unclear, such as the transition 'After this, they still experience social difficulties', which does not tie seamlessly into the previous sentence. To achieve a higher score, you should ensure that cohesive devices are used more flexibly and subtly, improving the flow between sentences and ideas without relying on formulaic sequencing.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

An adequate range of vocabulary is used for the task, allowing you to convey your message effectively. You make successful attempts at less common vocabulary items such as 'proficient', 'pursue higher education', and 'encounter significant challenges'. However, there are some inaccuracies in word choice and collocation, such as 'give priority to locals' rather than 'prioritize local candidates', and some repetitive phrasing, such as repeatedly using the phrase 'foreign country'. Additionally, there are minor awkward phrasings like 'cause serious social problems, as well as practical problems'. To reach a higher band, you need to incorporate a wider range of less common lexical items with greater precision and natural stylistic control.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

The response features an appropriate mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating your ability to construct multi-clause sentences such as 'If students want to pursue higher education, they may encounter significant challenges due to the language.' There are some errors in grammar and punctuation, particularly with missing articles or slight structural awkwardness in opening sentences like 'There is an ongoing debate about whether we live in a foreign country we have to speak the language...' However, these errors are relatively infrequent and rarely impede communication. To improve further, you should aim for a higher frequency of error-free complex sentences and refine your control over dependent clauses and prepositions.

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