Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-08-12

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Plastic bags, plastic bottles and plastic packaging are bad for the environment.

What damage does plastic do to the environment?

What can be done by governments and individuals to solve this problem?

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

 

Student answer (Band 6.0)

Plastic bags, plastic bottles and plastic packaging were made for human convenience but this stuff is damaging our environment in multiple ways.

There are a number of reasons why this blessing is tuned into disguise.

First of all the main reason for the damage done by plastic is its inappropriate usage. Domestic shopkeepers use plastic bags excessively even if there is no need of them. People throw them on roads and this leads to pollution. These bags then stuck in sewerage systems and pipelines.

Oceans are one of the most common places that are badly effected by plastic stuff. If we look at the effects of plastic on physical appearance of sea side, we turned the beautiful places into a trash.People visit these areas for picnic and other recreational activities and leave the remains of food packaging and plastic bottles on sea shore.

Consequently, this plastic stuff rushed towards water due to waves and it affects ocean creature badly. A recent study on aquatic life demonstrate that 70% of aquatic life is killed by lack of oxygen supply and trapping into plastic bags. The plastic bags makes a layer on the top of oceans and this layer hinders the supply of direct light and oxygen to aquatic life.

The main reason for this destruction is lack of proper awareness among people. Government should run awareness campaigns and social media ads to guide people about the impact of their acts on environment.

Secondly, plastic should be replaced by some recyclable stuff. For example plastic bottles should be replaced by glass bottles and a specific amount of money shall be rewarded to consumers if they returned the used bottle to shop.

Furthermore, plastic packaging for groceries and shopping should be replaced with threaded bags because these bags are used multiple times.

Government should encourage small initiatives at domestic level and this will automatically leads to betterment at national, international and eventually global level.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response addresses all parts of the prompt, identifying environmental damage and proposing solutions for both governments and individuals. The ideas are relevant and generally well-developed, such as the discussion on aquatic life and the suggestion for deposit-return schemes. However, the development could be more nuanced; for example, the claim that '70% of aquatic life is killed by lack of oxygen' is a sweeping generalisation that lacks scientific precision. While the position is clear, the essay would benefit from more specific examples of government policy beyond just awareness campaigns to reach a higher band.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay is logically organised into clear paragraphs, each with a distinct focus. There is a progression of ideas from the problem to the solutions. Cohesive devices are used, such as 'First of all', 'Consequently', and 'Furthermore', though some transitions feel slightly mechanical. Referencing is generally clear, although there are minor issues with pronoun usage, such as 'this stuff', which is informal and imprecise. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate the problem analysis from the proposed solutions, contributing to the overall coherence of the piece.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The vocabulary is adequate for the task, allowing the student to communicate ideas effectively. There is an attempt to use topic-specific vocabulary like 'aquatic life', 'sewerage systems', and 'recyclable'. However, the range is somewhat limited, and there is a reliance on informal or repetitive phrasing, such as 'plastic stuff' and 'this blessing is tuned into disguise' (which is an incorrect idiom). Word choice errors, such as 'effected' instead of 'affected' and 'rushed' instead of 'washed', occur but do not significantly impede communication.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The student uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are frequent grammatical errors, including subject-verb agreement issues ('The plastic bags makes', 'this will automatically leads') and article misuse. Punctuation is generally functional, but there are missing commas in introductory phrases. Complex structures are attempted, but they often contain minor errors that prevent the writing from reaching a higher level of accuracy. The majority of sentences are understandable, but the frequency of errors is noticeable.

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.