Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-08-20

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

In many countries around the world, rural people are moving to cities, so the population in the countryside is decreasing.

Do you think this is a positive or a negative development?

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

 

Student answer (Band 6.5)

It is often argued that, rural people are moving to urban areas in some countries worldwide, influencing decreased population in the countryside. I think this is a negative development because it is causing housing crisis in cities and village areas are becoming vacant that could be used to increase employment there.

One of the most disadvantageous side of it is that it is causing significant amount of housing crisis in almost every urban areas around the world. As cities have more employment and academic facilities with better quality of life, people nowadays prefer them over rural areas. As a result, more and more people are moving to these areas to grab better opportunities for themselves and their families. As their number have outgrown the housing capacity of cities, people are residing in unsafe high-rise apartments and crowded places. Consequently, it is creating safety and health issues for a lot of people. To cope with this surge, governments invest in construction of new residential areas, hampering the environment as well. For example, in Bangladesh there are four or five dedicated residential areas in Dhaka which have negatively affected the nature and made the urban area more crowded.

Another negative impact is that, the rural areas are becoming vacant with people moving to city areas leaving a large portion a country unused. These places could be used to develop more schools, colleges and businesses, creating employment opportunities for locals. Moreover, agriculture can be encouraged more with funds from governments so that people are encouraged to stay in villages and enjoy the facilities, reducing pressure on urban housing. For instance, entrepreneurs can identify gaps in the rural areas such as absence of restaurent chains or better digital services, and can serve them while earning profits. However, it needs government incentives to encourage startups to target rural areas.

In conclusion, in think moving to urban areas is a negative development as the population in the rural areas are decreasing which could be used effectively otherwise and the migration is causing huge housing crisis in cities

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The response addresses the prompt clearly, taking a firm stance that rural-to-urban migration is a negative development. You have identified two main reasons: the housing crisis in cities and the underutilization of rural potential. The ideas are relevant and generally well-developed, particularly the point regarding the strain on urban infrastructure. To reach a higher band, ensure that your supporting examples are more precisely linked to the argument. For instance, while you mention Dhaka, explaining how specific government policies could reverse this trend would strengthen the development of your ideas. Overall, the position is consistent throughout the essay.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The essay is logically organized with a clear introduction, two body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Each paragraph has a central theme, and the progression of ideas is easy to follow. You use a range of cohesive devices such as 'consequently', 'moreover', and 'for instance' to link sentences. However, some transitions feel slightly mechanical, and there are minor issues with referencing, such as in the phrase 'leaving a large portion a country unused', where the connection to the previous clause could be smoother. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate distinct arguments.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You demonstrate a sufficient range of vocabulary to discuss the topic with some precision, using terms like 'housing capacity', 'infrastructure', and 'incentives'. There are some minor inaccuracies in word choice and collocation, such as 'disadvantageous side' (better: 'disadvantage') and 'influencing decreased population' (better: 'leading to a decrease in population'). While you attempt to use less common vocabulary, some phrasing is slightly unnatural. However, the vocabulary is adequate to convey your meaning clearly throughout the response without causing confusion for the reader.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While there are frequent error-free sentences, there are persistent minor errors in grammar and punctuation. For example, 'as their number have outgrown' (subject-verb agreement error: 'has') and 'in think moving' (typo: 'I think'). Additionally, there are some missing articles, such as 'in almost every urban areas' (should be 'area'). Despite these errors, the meaning is always clear, and the grammatical mistakes do not impede communication. Increasing the variety of complex structures while focusing on subject-verb agreement would improve your score.

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