Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-09-17

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 6.0)

A lot of rural people from different countries in the world are moving to developed cities and leaving rural areas, and I am convinced that it is a negative development as it will overpopulate cities, and acquiring an accomodation will become a cumbersome task for individuals.

People from rural areas are moving to urban areas becaue they do not have access to basic facilities in their areas. They have to travel long distances just to attend their classes. Even working professionals who are working in big industries, have to do a long commute. Migrating from rural to urban area is resulting in decrease in population in rural region, which is not a positive development. It is necessary to maintain even distribution of individuals in all regions of the country.

In addition to that, decrease in population is affecting the workforce, that was available in those ares to aide in farming. The majority of people are not willing to live in rural areas, because they are not getting enough resources to do farming and generate good income. For instance, Wollongong is a rural area nearby Sydney, and People living in that region prefer to move to Sydney, as they do not have any earning platforms. As a result, Sydney is getting too crowded, and people are not able to find houses to rent. On the other hand, Wollongong is getting empty and there are not enough people to run grocery stores or provide taxi services.

In conclusion, although rural people are moving to urban areas for better resources, I believe that it is a negative development, as it will overcrowd cities, and there will be a shortage of workforce in rural areas.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response addresses all parts of the prompt by discussing the rural-to-urban migration trend and clearly stating a position that it is a negative development. The student supports this stance with relevant reasons, such as overpopulation in cities and agricultural workforce shortages in the countryside. Examples are provided, such as Wollongong and Sydney, which help illustrate the main ideas. However, some of the ideas could be extended further with deeper explanation. For instance, the point about education access is introduced in the second paragraph but left slightly underdeveloped before shifting to other issues. Overall, the task is properly fulfilled with a clear and consistent stance throughout the essay, aligning well with the requirements for a Band 6.5 or solid 6.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay displays a coherent overall arrangement with a clear logical progression from introduction to body paragraphs and conclusion. Paragraphing is used appropriately, with each body paragraph focusing on a distinct sub-theme, such as living standards and workforce issues. Cohesive devices are employed, including transitional phrases like 'In addition to that', 'For instance', and 'On the other hand'. However, referencing and cohesion can sometimes feel slightly mechanical or repetitive in structure. Additionally, minor organizational transitions could be smoother. The progression of ideas remains clear to the reader throughout the text, matching the criteria for Band 6.0.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully attempting less common items such as 'cumbersome', 'professionals', 'distribution', and 'infrastructure'. However, there are some noticeable inaccuracies in word choice and spelling. For instance, 'accomodation' is misspelled, and phrases like 'earning platforms' are awkward and unnatural collocations for describing employment opportunities. Despite these lexical slips, the vocabulary used is sufficient to convey the intended meaning without impeding communication, representing typical Band 6 performance in lexical resource.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The response features a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating a reasonable command of grammar. Examples of complex structures include concessive and causal clauses, such as 'Although rural people are moving to urban areas for better resources, I believe that...' However, there are several grammatical errors and punctuation lapses, such as unnecessary commas ('industries, have to') and spelling/typographical slips in basic words. Furthermore, there is a minor prepositional error in 'in those ares to aide in farming' where 'ares' is a typo for 'areas'. These errors do not impede overall communication, placing the grammar comfortably at Band 6.0.

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

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