Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-09-13

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

In some cultures, children are often told that they can achieve anything if they try hard enough. What are the advantages and disadvantages of giving children this message?

Student answer (Band 6.0)

It is a common practice in some cultures to tell children that they can achieve anything in life, if they try their best to get it. There are certain advantages and disadvantages of this approach, as it can make children stubborn, or they may grow up as a dedicated individual of a society.

Telling your children that they can achieve anything in their life help them understand their capabilities. It also shape them as a dedicated and strong individual, and they can channel their emotionality in a positive way. When a child is aware that he can do wonders in any domain of life, he will not get afraid of any obstacles, and will always strive hard to perform his best.

There are some disadvantages of using this approach as well. Firstly, the children will never learn to face failure, and might end up loosing their interest in whatever they are trying to achieve. Moreover some youngsters will become stubborn, that they want to get everything they desire, and they will get highly disheart when something will not act according to their desires. These children might end up thinking that they are a failure, if they do not end up getting a job or admission in their favourite university just because they worked hard for it. The dynamics of our world does not work this way, as someone might give their best and still end up not achieving their goal.

In conclusion, letting the children know that they can get anything they put their best in, has benefits and drawbacks, but its drawbacks definitely outweight its benefits.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The response addresses all parts of the task by discussing both the advantages and disadvantages of telling children they can achieve anything. A clear position is stated in the introduction and reinforced in the conclusion, where the writer states that the drawbacks outweigh the benefits. Ideas are generally well-developed, such as examining how children learn to handle failure and the potential development of stubbornness. However, some points could be extended further with more specific examples or deeper analysis to fully reach the higher bands. For instance, the discussion on emotionality in the second paragraph is slightly vague. Overall, the task response is solid and covers the prompt adequately, earning a band score of 6.5.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay has a clear overall progression and is divided into logical paragraphs, with an introduction, a body paragraph for advantages, a body paragraph for disadvantages, and a conclusion. Cohesive devices are used to guide the reader through the text, such as 'Firstly', 'Moreover', and 'In conclusion'. However, there are occasional instances of faulty referencing or awkward transitions, such as 'someone might give their best and still end up not achieving their goal', which weakens the flow slightly. Paragraphing is used appropriately, but overall cohesion feels somewhat mechanical rather than entirely natural. These features align well with a band score of 6.0.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully incorporating terms like 'capabilities', 'obstacles', 'dynamics', and 'disheartened' (misspelled as 'disheart'). There are some noticeable lexical errors and awkward word choices, such as 'loosing' instead of 'losing', and 'dedicated individual of a society'. Less common vocabulary is attempted with mixed success, and occasional spelling mistakes slightly distract the reader. However, the vocabulary is sufficient to convey the intended meaning without major impedance to communication, placing the response firmly at band 6.0.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The essay displays a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating attempts at varied structures such as conditional and relative clauses ('When a child is aware that he can do wonders...'). However, there are several grammatical errors and awkward agreements throughout the text, including 'help them understand' instead of 'helps them', 'It also shape them' instead of 'shapes', and 'the children will never learn... and might end up loosing' where tense consistency is flawed. Punctuation errors also appear, such as unnecessary commas before 'that they want to get everything'. These errors occasionally cause slight difficulty for the reader, justifying a band score of 5.5.

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