Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-09-01

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)

It is believed that the products made up of plastic like bags, bottles, etcetera, are harmful for our environment. In this essay, I will talk about the detrimental effects done by plastic in our environment. I will also discuss some measures, legal authorities and people could take together to mitigate this issue.

To commence with, as a non-biodegradable waste, the plastic product is one of the main reasons of air, soil and water pollution. To explain, plastic break down very slowly into tiny particles known as microplastics that spread into ocean, soil, and air. For example, there was a news article in the newspaper “The Tribune” in 2022, which claimed that plastic waste is one of the possible cause of pollution in world. Hence, these products are not safe for human’s surroundings.

There are several steps which government and people could adopt to get rid of this serious problem. The Government should put a ban not only the factories which make plastic products but also on the usage of plastic bag or bottles by individuals. On the other hand, it should be highly encouraged among people to carry their own cloth bags or jute bags whenever they are going out for shopping. Due to this, they don’t have to take pastic bags from the shopkeepers. Similarly, they can carry a stainless steel water bottles from their home instead of buying a plastic water bottles from the stores.

To conclude, as an evolving generation we understand the seriousness of the harmful effects of pastics to our environment, not only us, but the authorities also should take measures to preserve our ecosystem to their best.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response addresses all parts of the prompt, identifying environmental damage and suggesting solutions for both governments and individuals. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited. For instance, the explanation of microplastics is brief, and the example from 'The Tribune' is vague and lacks specific detail to support the argument effectively. While the position is clear, the ideas could be extended with more depth or specific real-world examples to reach a higher band. The conclusion is a bit repetitive and does not fully synthesize the points made in the body paragraphs.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The essay is logically organized with a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate the problem from the solutions. Cohesive devices such as 'To commence with', 'To explain', and 'On the other hand' are used to guide the reader. However, some transitions feel slightly mechanical, and the referencing within sentences could be smoother. For example, the transition between the government's role and individual actions in the second body paragraph is a bit abrupt. Overall, the progression of ideas is clear and easy to follow.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, allowing the writer to convey their message clearly. There are some attempts at less common vocabulary, such as 'non-biodegradable' and 'mitigate', which are used correctly. However, there are instances of word-choice errors and minor spelling mistakes, such as 'pastic' instead of 'plastic' and 'human's surroundings' which is slightly unnatural. The range is sufficient to discuss the topic, but it lacks the precision and sophistication required for a higher band score.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is consistently clear, there are several grammatical errors throughout the text. Examples include 'plastic break down' (subject-verb agreement), 'one of the possible cause' (pluralization error), and 'put a ban not only the factories' (missing preposition). Punctuation is generally functional, but the sentence structure could be more varied to demonstrate greater control. The errors do not impede communication, but they are frequent enough to prevent a higher score.

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