Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-10-25

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)

The population of villages is decreasing as people are migrating from villages to cities for better lifestyle in many regions around the world. I believe it is a highly negative trend that not only cause population burst in urban areas but also overwhelmingly affects agriculture in rural areas.

The city life apparently seems to offer significant opportunities to become successful in today's world. Therefore, people from adjoining countryside tend to settle in cities to try their luck. However, a specific urban center may accomodate only a limited number of people. That is why the influx of a great number of settlers disturbs the existing status-quo of the city. As a result, we see population burst globally in many urban regions. It further leads to pollution and depletion of vital resources like water and fresh air to breath. For example, the populous cities like New Delhi, Lahore and Tokyo are some of the worst cities in terms of quality of air around the world.

The shift of masses to urban areas also negatively affect the countryside. As more people aspire to go to cities and enjoy the advantages of a lavish city life, the essence of villages; agriculture begins to remain unattended. The farms and fields gets barren due to the disinterest of villagers. Hence, the production of grains and vegetable is reduced which directly impacts farmers and the country as a whole. For instance, the once famous orchards and fields of villages around my city Peshawar are now turned into lifeless lands due to the less interest of people of those villages towards farming.

In conclusion, the migration of people from rural areas to urban centers significantly reduces the resources for the people in the cities and disturbs agriculture in the rural regions as well.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

Your position is clear from the introduction: you regard rural-to-urban migration as negative, and the conclusion restates this view. You address both consequences named in your thesis—pressure on city resources and harm to agriculture—and support them with examples, including New Delhi, Lahore and Tokyo, and the orchards near Peshawar. This makes the response relevant and covers the task. However, the urban example mainly asserts that these cities have poor air quality, without showing how migration specifically contributes to it. The agricultural point is more developed, but the effects on farmers and the country could be explained further. To strengthen the response, make the cause-and-effect links explicit and develop each example with a little more explanation.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The essay has a clear overall structure: an introduction states your view, two body paragraphs discuss separate effects, and a conclusion summarises them. The progression from urban pressures to rural agricultural decline is easy to follow, and signposts such as “As a result,” “Hence,” and “For instance” help connect claims and examples. This gives the response a coherent arrangement. Some links are nevertheless mechanical, and the relationship between migration and particular outcomes is occasionally asserted rather than carefully traced. For example, the move from city population growth to pollution would benefit from a more explicit explanation. The conclusion also repeats the main points without adding a final implication. Use a wider range of natural transitions and clearer references between sentences to make the progression more flexible.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of topic vocabulary, including “migrating,” “influx,” “depletion,” “agriculture,” and “production of grains.” These choices help communicate the main ideas, and attempts such as “status-quo” and “essence” show an effort to use less common language. Some word choices and collocations are inaccurate or unnatural, however: “population burst” is not the usual expression, “air to breath” should use the noun “breath” or the verb “breathe,” and “the essence of villages; agriculture” is unclear. There are also spelling and form slips such as “accomodate” and “vegetable” where a plural is needed. Aim for precise, natural collocations rather than elevated wording that does not fit the meaning.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mix of simple and complex sentences, including cause-and-effect structures with “Therefore,” “As a result,” and “Hence,” and most of the meaning remains clear. Some grammatical errors persist, particularly with subject–verb agreement and noun forms. For example, “not only cause” should agree with the singular subject, “the influx … disturbs” is correctly formed, but later “the shift … also negatively affect” needs a singular verb. Similarly, “The farms and fields gets barren” has a plural subject, and “the production of grains and vegetable is reduced” needs a consistent plural form. The semicolon in “villages; agriculture” also disrupts the sentence structure. Review agreement and sentence punctuation, then check each sentence for a clear grammatical connection between its clauses.

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