Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-09-05

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)

Most people think that not much of the waste materials from homes is recycled and the government should make it a legal requirement to increase recycling. I would argue that laws are also required to save our environment from pollution but instead we should provide proper facilities to people, so that they can easily recycle their waste.

On the one hand, some people think that the government should make it a legal requirement to increase recycling. Moreover, people will definitely follow the laws and recycle their waste from their homes. A small amount of fine should be imposed on people who do not follow the laws. For instance, in Japan people intensively follow the legal laws and recycle their garbage, if they do not follow the law they have to pay a heavy fine. People should responsibly do recycling and they have to separate the waste, that which is usable or which is not.

On the other hand, some people believe that we cannot follow the legal laws if we do not have proper facilities for recycling. Furthermore, the government should provide proper facilities for example they should add recycling bins outside of their homes and also provide transportation facilities, so that that the daily waste can be collected. For instance, in Pakistan the government provides facilities to the public to collect waste outside of their homes. They recycle some of the materials which can be used again and benefit the public. Additionally, the government should charge the public significantly less for all of these facilities.

To conclude, I believe that the government should provide basic facilities to the public to recycle their waste rather than to only make it a legal requirement.

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response6.0
Coherence and Cohesion6.0
Lexical Resource6.0
Grammatical Range and Accuracy6.0
Overall6.0

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response addresses all parts of the prompt, presenting a clear position that balances the need for legislation with the necessity of infrastructure. The ideas are relevant, such as the mention of fines in Japan and the provision of bins in Pakistan. However, the development is somewhat superficial. The arguments could be strengthened by exploring the 'extent' of the need for laws more deeply—for example, discussing whether laws are effective without the infrastructure first. While the position is consistent, the conclusion is a bit brief and does not fully synthesize the arguments presented in the body paragraphs.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay is logically organized into clear paragraphs. There is a progression of ideas from the introduction to the body paragraphs and the conclusion. Cohesive devices are used, such as 'On the one hand', 'On the other hand', and 'Furthermore'. However, some transitions feel a bit mechanical or repetitive. For instance, the use of 'Furthermore' and 'Additionally' is frequent. Referencing is generally clear, though some sentences could be linked more fluidly to improve the overall flow of the argument. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate the two main viewpoints.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The range of vocabulary is adequate for the task but lacks sophistication. The student uses basic terms like 'proper facilities', 'waste materials', and 'make it a legal requirement' repeatedly. There are some attempts at less common vocabulary, such as 'intensively follow' and 'imposed', but these are sometimes used with slightly awkward collocations. To reach a higher band, the student should aim for more precise academic vocabulary and avoid repeating the same phrases throughout the essay. Spelling is generally accurate, and the vocabulary used does not impede communication.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The essay demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is always clear, there are frequent minor errors in grammar and punctuation. For example, 'legal laws' is redundant, and there are issues with article usage and prepositions, such as 'outside of their homes' (instead of 'outside homes'). The sentence 'People should responsibly do recycling and they have to separate the waste, that which is usable or which is not' is somewhat clunky. A wider variety of error-free complex structures would be needed to achieve a higher band score.

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

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