Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-10-16
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)
Nowadays, in many nations people from rural areas are migrating to urban areas, and the population in the villageside is decreasing significantly. Although this development has many benefits, I believe it is a negative development because it create issues such as traffic congestion and pollution in the urban areas.
One positive aspect of this development is that people living in a rural area will find better opportunities when they will migrate to megacities. To explain it in simple words, they will have a access of better education, and they will find more job opportunities in compared with rural area. To illustrate, many people across the globe have to migrate from a village to a city for better job opportunities.
Nevertheless, this trend also has some negative consequences. Firstly, this development will increase the population of megacities which will create overcrowded cities, and there will be more and more vehicles on the roads in the city. Consequently, people living in the urban area will face a problem of traffic congestion. Secondly, an increasing number of vehicle in the urban area will increase the rate of pollution in the country, as there will be more cars and bikes on the roads which will release gases such as carbon dioxide and methane in their day-to-day use. As a result, this development can lead to an issue of global warming and growing temperature throughout the world.
To conclude, migration of people to the cities can give them several benefits such as better job opportunities and education, I believe this development can lead to overcrowded cities where people can have to face many problems such as traffic congestion and pollution.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 6.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 6.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 6.0 |
| Overall | 6.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5
Your position is clear: you acknowledge benefits for migrants but judge the overall trend negatively because of congestion and pollution. You address both sides and give relevant explanations, including the link between more vehicles and emissions. This meets the task well, and the examples make the main points understandable. However, the positive point about education and employment is asserted rather than developed with a specific example or explanation of how access improves. The pollution discussion is more extended, but the claim that vehicles release methane is not well supported. To strengthen the response further, develop both sides more evenly and use a precise, credible example to support your reasoning.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5
The response has a clear overall structure: an introduction, a paragraph on benefits, a paragraph on drawbacks, and a conclusion. The progression from migration to urban pressure and then environmental effects is easy to follow. Linking expressions such as “Nevertheless,” “Consequently,” and “As a result” help show relationships between ideas. At times, however, the connections feel mechanical, and some points repeat rather than advance the argument—for example, the conclusion restates congestion and pollution without adding a final synthesis. The opening sentence of the final paragraph also joins two complete ideas with only a comma. Use a wider range of transitions more selectively, and make the conclusion a concise restatement of the overall judgement.
Lexical Resource: Band 6.0
You use an adequate range of topic vocabulary, including “migrating,” “opportunities,” “overcrowded,” “traffic congestion,” and “global warming.” These choices make the subject clear, and some phrases show an attempt to be precise. However, several expressions are awkward or inaccurate, such as “villageside,” “a access of better education,” and “in compared with rural area.” Repetition of “development,” “urban area,” and “more” also limits flexibility. The reference to “methane” from everyday vehicle use is imprecise in this context; “vehicle emissions” would be safer and more natural. Aim for accurate collocations and vary repeated terms, while keeping the vocabulary clear rather than forcing uncommon expressions.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0
You attempt a mix of simple and complex sentences, using clauses with “although,” “because,” and “which,” and most of your meaning remains clear. Some grammatical errors persist, particularly with articles, agreement, verb forms, and sentence boundaries. For example, “it create issues” needs subject–verb agreement, while “when they will migrate” uses an unsuitable future form after “when.” In “an increasing number of vehicle,” the noun should be plural, and “people can have to face” is not a well-formed modal construction. The final sentence also contains a comma splice between two independent clauses. Review article use and verb patterns, and check each sentence for a complete, correctly joined structure.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.