Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-11-05

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Some people claim that not enough of the waste from homes is recycled. They say that the only way to increase recycling is for governments to make it a legal requirement.

To what extent do you think laws are needed to make people recycle more of their waste?

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

Student answer (Band 6.0)

Some people hold the belief that only a little amount of waste is being recycled in the households and the best way for increasing recycling is making it compulsory for all, by the governments.Although implementing laws can really make a big difference, other factors are still important at the same time,which are discussed in the subsequent paragraphs. Therefore, I partially agree with this viewpoint.

At the outset, the most plausible reason for my opinion is its necessity. If the government make it mandatory for all to recycle their waste materials such as old boots, purse and any other material, then it is likely that people would take this more seriously and take steps. They would make efforts to use products and then send it to the recycling places. Along with this, they would put efforts in waste segregration and more things can be recycled easily. For instance, a person who has a lot of old shoes collection, it can be used to make slippers and even other materials ,if recycling is compulsory. Thus, it will utlimately help in decreasing the waste that might ended up in landfills and also provide new usable things to various people that may need those things.

However, it would be all meaningless if people are not aware and they do not have recycled centers in their cities. First of all, before making such regulations to increase recycling , the authorities should invest in these recycling centers. Many NGO's have been opened in the past few years, where recycled products are provided to those who need them. Goverment should provide incentives to those people who run such things and provide loans to encourage more people also. This will lead to rise in the recycling centers and the public will also be happy to contribute for the welfare of impoverished society. The further step is awaring people about the concerns of landfills and untreated waste. The authorities ahould organise campaigns to spread awareness and to protect the ecosystem. All this things collectively would certainly made recycling, an environment friendly habit.

In conclusion, I believe that government policies would be beneficial to increase recycling, but it seems to me that it is not the only option. From my perspective, there are other ways such as spreading awareness, and investment in recycling centers, that are equal important and can make a real difference.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

Your position is clear: you partially agree that laws can help, while arguing that awareness and recycling facilities are also necessary. You address both sides of the issue and support them with relevant examples, such as requiring people to sort waste and investing in recycling centres. This meets the task well, but the development is uneven. The discussion of legal requirements is mostly general, and the example about old shoes becoming slippers does not fully explain how a law would change household behaviour. The points about NGOs, incentives and public awareness are relevant, but their connection to the effectiveness of recycling could be made more explicit. To strengthen the response, explain how enforcement or penalties might work and develop one specific example showing why facilities and education are needed alongside legislation.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.0

The essay has a clear overall progression: an introduction states your position, two body paragraphs consider laws and supporting measures, and the conclusion restates your view. Paragraphing is appropriate, and signposts such as “However” and “In conclusion” help readers follow the argument. Within paragraphs, ideas generally move in a sensible order, particularly from providing recycling centres to raising awareness. Some linking is less natural or repetitive, however: “At the outset” and “First of all” do not add much to the argument, while “Along with this” and “All this things collectively” connect ideas rather mechanically. A few references, such as “such things,” are also vague. Use more precise links that show cause, contrast or consequence, and make the relationship between each supporting point explicit.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use a relevant range of topic vocabulary, including “mandatory,” “waste segregation,” “landfills,” “incentives” and “ecosystem.” These choices show an attempt to discuss the issue beyond basic terms. However, noticeable spelling, word-form and collocation errors reduce precision: “segregration,” “utlimately,” “Goverment,” “ahould” and “awaring” are misspelled or incorrectly formed, while “a little amount” and “recycled centers” are unnatural expressions. Some wording is also vague, such as “other material” and “such things.” These issues do not prevent the main message from being understood, but they limit the accuracy and flexibility of your vocabulary. Proofread carefully and learn common collocations for recycling and government policy.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mix of simple and complex structures, including conditional sentences (“If the government make it mandatory…”) and a contrastive clause beginning “Although.” This gives the response some structural variety, and the main ideas remain understandable. However, some errors in agreement, verb forms, articles and sentence construction persist. For example, “the government make” should be “the government makes,” “All this things” should be “All these things,” and “would certainly made” should be “would certainly make.” In “a person who has a lot of old shoes collection, it can be used,” the reference and sentence structure are unclear. Punctuation spacing is also inconsistent. Review subject–verb agreement and conditional patterns, and check that pronouns clearly refer to the intended noun.

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

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.