Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · 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 6.5)

Many people around the globe are migrating from rural to urban areas, hence, reducing the population there. Although the countryside is good for farming and livestock rearing, it is a very positive development for people to move to the cities because, it brings them closer to basic amenities and better job opportunities.

Urbanization has really gone a long way in mitigating suffering because it has provided and will keep providing man with basic amenities. These facilities includes amenities that has either kept us alive or kept us where we are today in that without urbanization, we would not have the kind of hospitals that has been saving people's life and also the good schools that have shaped us for greater future. In Riverside for example, there is only one school and a hospital available for the people in the village.This has reduced the chances of survival and increased mortality rate amongst the people. This shows that moving to city has made more people live a longer and more fulfilled life.

For one to eat, he/she must have to work and this is possible only if there is availability of jobs. The country side is not known for constructions making it very difficult to see companies and standard organizations that can employ people, so they travel to the cities for better lives both for themselves and their families. For instance, people migrating to Onitsha (a big town in Nigeria) from their respective villages for greener pastures are doing a lot better than they could imagine if they were still in the rural area. Therefore, the city has provided much more jobs than the villages would ever

be able to.

In conclusion, moving of a lot of people from rural areas to urban areas is a positive development both

to the people and to the country at large.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The response addresses the prompt directly, taking a clear stance that rural-to-urban migration is a positive development. The writer presents relevant arguments centred on access to basic amenities, healthcare, and employment opportunities. The ideas are extended with specific examples, such as the mention of Riverside village and Onitsha in Nigeria, which helps illustrate the points made. However, there is a tendency to over-generalise slightly in places, and some arguments could be explored with greater depth to reach higher bands. Overall, all parts of the task are addressed adequately, and a consistent position is maintained throughout the essay. This performance aligns well with the requirements for Band 6.5, which is rounded to 6.5.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The essay displays a logical overall progression, moving from an introduction to two distinct body paragraphs discussing healthcare/amenities and jobs respectively, followed by a brief conclusion. Cohesive devices such as 'Although', 'For one to eat', 'For instance', and 'In conclusion' are used to connect ideas, though some referencing and transitions can feel slightly mechanical. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate different main ideas. The referencing is mostly clear, though occasional minor slip-ups in cohesion prevent the essay from reaching higher bands. The logical organisation is clear throughout, supporting a coherent reading experience, which places the response securely at Band 6.5.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary suitable for the task, successfully attempting less common items such as 'urbanization', 'mitigating suffering', 'basic amenities', and 'greener pastures'. There are some word choice and collocation inaccuracies, for instance writing 'These facilities includes' instead of 'include', and 'provided much more jobs' instead of 'provided many more jobs'. Spelling is generally accurate, and vocabulary errors do not impede communication. The lexical resource is sufficient for the task and shows an attempt to use a varied vocabulary, matching the descriptors for Band 6.0.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The writer uses a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, incorporating clauses introduced by 'although', 'because', and 'if'. However, there are noticeable grammatical errors and awkward phrasing, such as subject-verb agreement issues ('These facilities includes amenities that has either kept us alive...'), and comma splices or run-on tendencies. Punctuation is occasionally faulty, but despite these errors, the meaning remains clear and they rarely impede overall communication. The presence of frequent minor errors alongside complex sentence attempts places this response firmly at the Band 6.0 level.

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

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