Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-10-03

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)

In today's world, some people believe that not enough of the waste from homes is recycled. I partially agree that the only way to increase recycling is for governments to make it a legal requirement because the government can develop effective recycling plants and schemes that in turn increase the waste being recycled.

Firstly, the government making recycling as a legal requirement helps to develop more recycling plants across the country. If they consider recycling as a major problem, they are more likely to construct more plants which even help in reducing the amount of waste in homes. Thus, this is one of the approaches for increasing recycling around the world. Secondly, the government should also create effective recycling schemes like rewarding certain amount of money to individuals who provide recyclable waste to recycling plants. If people are rewarded for contributing their recyclable waste, they are more likely to work for this issue.

On the other hand, there are many other ways to increase recycling like individuals making effort to recycle products. For example, if a person collects plastic bottles and gives to the nearest recycling plants, they are more likely to increase this process of recycling. Therefore, this can be another approach to promote recycling. Additionally, private recycling companies can also provide facilities like door-step collection of waste, which allow residents to decrease the amount of waste available at homes. This is because some residents are unable to provide waste due to their busy schedules, so this approach can help them to reduce the waste at their home.

In conclusion, I partially agree that the only way to increase recycling is for governments to make it a legal requirement as they may increase the recycling plants and offer effective schemes. However, there are many other ways to promote recycling such as contribution from individuals and private companies. I believe that there are many different approaches to increase recycling and one of them could be the government making it a legal requirement.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

The response addresses all parts of the task and presents a clear, partial position regarding whether laws are needed to enforce recycling. Relevant ideas are introduced, but some are more fully developed than others. For instance, the first body paragraph touches upon government plants and schemes, but the ideas remain somewhat broad and lack deeper extension with specific examples. Note that 42 words copied directly from the task prompt were not counted toward the overall total. To reach a higher level, the writer should ensure that every main idea is thoroughly elaborated with fully explained consequences and concrete real-world examples rather than remaining somewhat repetitive or generalized.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The essay displays a coherent overall arrangement with a clear introduction and conclusion, alongside identifiable paragraphing. The progression of ideas is generally logical, moving from government measures to individual and private company alternatives. However, cohesion is sometimes mechanical or slightly repetitive, relying heavily on transitional markers such as 'Firstly', 'Secondly', and 'On the other hand'. Referencing is occasionally loose, such as the pronoun use in 'gives to the nearest recycling plants'. To achieve a higher standard, the writer should employ a wider and more flexible range of cohesive devices and ensure that referencing between sentences is seamless and unambiguous.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

The vocabulary used provides an adequate range for the task, allowing the writer to communicate their thoughts clearly. There are attempts to use less common vocabulary and phraseology, such as 'legal requirement' and 'door-step collection of waste'. However, some word choices and collocations are slightly unnatural or inaccurate, such as 'rewarding certain amount of money' instead of 'awarding a certain amount of money' or 'providing recyclable waste' instead of 'contributing recyclable waste'. Spelling is generally accurate throughout. To progress, the student should aim to incorporate more sophisticated, less common lexical items with precise collocation and stylistic control.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

The text demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, effectively utilizing conditional structures and dependent clauses. There are some errors in grammar and punctuation, such as article omissions and prepositions in phrases like 'making recycling as a legal requirement' instead of 'making recycling a legal requirement', and 'gives to the nearest' missing an object. Nevertheless, these errors are relatively infrequent and rarely impede communication, allowing the reader to follow the argument without difficulty. To reach a higher standard, the writer needs to increase the proportion of error-free complex sentences and refine their control over articles and prepositions within grammatical patterns.

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