Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-08-23

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 6.5)

Nowadays, there is a significant increase in the use of plastic. Almost every individual is using plastic in certain ways such as bags, bottles and packaging. Therefore, an excess use of plastic has damaged the environment by causing pollution. I believe the government can impose some strict rules and fines to the public and the individual by following rules can save the environment from pollution.

Plastics damage the environment in multiple ways such as water pollution and air pollution. When people throw plastics in the canals, it causes blockage in the drainage system and results into causing water pollution. Similarly, when plastic is burnt by the people, it leaves harmful gases into environment and causes breathing problems among community. In addition, if an individual collects too many garbage bags outside the house, some animals such as skunks tend to scatter the garbage all around the streets which leads to cause hygiene issues.

Every problem has a solution, so do pollution. Therefore, the government can impose certain rules to limit the use of plastic. Firstly, there should be a fixed garbage collection day in the city because it restricts the problem of garbage accumulation outside the house. Also, it maintains a hygiene in the area. Secondly, the government should ban the plastic products completely. There should be no use of plastic in any way such as bags, containers or bottles. In addition to that, violators should be fined. For example, if an individual is caught with a plastic bags, he should be fined for violating the rules. As a result, gradually the use of plastic may be reduced and people may live a healthy life.

In conclusion, although there is an excessive use of plastic, the government and individual can together reduce to overall consumption of plastic. A substitute to plastic can help people to live a disease free life with a good hygiene.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The response addresses all parts of the prompt, identifying environmental damage and suggesting solutions for both governments and individuals. The ideas are relevant, such as water pollution from drainage blockages and the suggestion of banning plastic products. However, the development is somewhat basic. For instance, the suggestion to 'ban plastic products completely' is a strong idea but lacks nuance or discussion of feasibility. The position is clear throughout, but the arguments could be extended further to reach a higher band. The response is well-structured and covers the requirements of the task adequately.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The essay is logically organized with a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Each paragraph has a central topic, such as the environmental impact in the second paragraph and solutions in the third. Cohesive devices like 'Similarly', 'In addition', and 'Firstly' are used to link ideas, although some transitions feel a bit mechanical. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate the different aspects of the prompt. The progression of ideas is generally smooth, though the connection between the individual's role and the government's role could be more seamlessly integrated in the final paragraph.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The vocabulary is adequate for the task, allowing the writer to convey their ideas clearly. There is some attempt to use topic-specific vocabulary such as 'drainage system', 'hygiene issues', and 'accumulation'. However, the range is somewhat limited, and there are occasional inaccuracies in word choice, such as 'results into causing' (should be 'results in') and 'maintains a hygiene' (should be 'maintains hygiene'). The use of 'excessive use' and 'substitute' shows a decent grasp of language, but more sophisticated or precise collocations would be needed to reach a higher band.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are frequent minor errors in grammar and punctuation. Examples include 'fines to the public' (should be 'fines for the public'), 'leaves harmful gases into environment' (should be 'into the environment'), and 'caught with a plastic bags' (should be 'a plastic bag'). Additionally, there are some awkward phrasings like 'so do pollution'. Despite these errors, the grammatical control is sufficient to ensure that communication is not impeded, and the writer demonstrates an ability to construct complex sentences.

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