Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-11-02

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 6.5)

Children are told that they can achieve their goals if they work hard for them, in some cultures. This message can have advantages or disdvantages, depending on a child's situation.

This message is usually used to motivate children. Elders say this to make sure that children work hard for their goals. Sometimes, children may give up their dreams or ambitions just because they think that their goals are not within their reach. This message motivates them that anything is within their reach if they work hard enough. Consequently, children go above and beyond their potential to fulfill their ambitions. For instance, if parents whose child is not good at maths, tell him or her that she or he can do anything if they work hard and keep motivating their child like this, eventually, the student might start believing it and use his or her full potential and might get good grades in maths.

However, sometimes, this message can harm a child psychologically. In some situations this message might not be true or might not work. Sometimes, the reason behind a child not achieving his or her goal is not lack of hard work or conviction, in some cases there might be a psychological or physical reason behind it. Telling a child that he or she is failing because they are not trying hard enough, when they are suffering from ADHD or some attention deficit disorder might actually have negative affect on that child. He or she might start thinking that they are not good enough and start belittling him or herself. For example, a child not able to read won't benefit from this message if he or she has any eyesight disorder.

In conclusion, the advantages or disadvantages of this message depends on the kind of situation a child is in. In a situation, where a little motivation might help and the child have no such other barriers this message would help a lot, but in situations, where the child is trying his or her best and there are other barriers, like physical or psychological, this message could do damage to a child's self-respect and brain.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.0

The response addresses both advantages and disadvantages and maintains a clear, balanced position: the message can motivate children, but may be harmful when barriers beyond effort are involved. The maths example supports the benefit, while the discussion of ADHD and eyesight problems illustrates the risks. These relevant examples and explanations give the main ideas good development. To strengthen the response further, make the distinction between encouragement and implying that failure is always due to insufficient effort more explicit. The disadvantage discussion is developed through several examples, whereas the advantage is mainly illustrated through one scenario; explaining more fully how persistence can benefit children in different contexts would make the support more consistently developed.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.0

The essay has a clear progression: an introduction presents the issue, separate body paragraphs discuss benefits and drawbacks, and the conclusion restates the conditional position. Linking expressions such as “Consequently,” “However,” and “For example” help readers follow the reasoning, and the examples are placed alongside the points they support. Some connections are less smooth because ideas and wording are repeated, particularly the repeated use of “Sometimes” in the disadvantage paragraph and “this message” throughout. The long final sentence also combines several conditions and consequences, making the conclusion less easy to process. Varying references and dividing that sentence would make cohesion more flexible and the progression more polished.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

The vocabulary is adequate for discussing motivation, achievement, and barriers, with useful terms such as “ambitions,” “potential,” “psychologically,” and “self-respect.” Meaning remains clear throughout, and the writer attempts some topic-specific language. However, the range is not consistently precise: “go above and beyond their potential” is an awkward collocation, and “negative affect” uses the wrong word form in this context. “Disdvantages” is also misspelled, while repeated words such as “message,” “child,” and “work hard” limit variety. Aim for more natural collocations and accurate word forms, and use alternatives such as “encouragement,” “effort,” or “persistence” where appropriate.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

The response uses a mix of simple and complex structures, including conditional clauses such as “if they work hard enough” and a relative clause in “a child not able to read.” Most sentences communicate the intended meaning, and the writer attempts to express nuanced conditions. Some grammatical errors remain, especially with agreement and sentence construction. For example, “the advantages or disadvantages … depends” should use a plural verb, and “the child have no such other barriers” should be “the child has no other barriers.” The sentence beginning “For instance, if parents whose child…” is awkwardly structured, and the final sentence contains several clauses that are difficult to control. Review agreement and simplify or divide long sentences.

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