Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-09-18

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)

In today’s world, private companies rather than the government pay for and conduct most scientific research. Do you think the disadvantages outweigh the advantages?

The relative benefits and drawbacks of spending money on scientific research by independence organization instead of the government are a matter of debate. While there are few disadvantages of this, this could be outweighed by its advantages.

On the one hand, there are two main positives of this situation. Firstly, private companies are solely based on one particular purpose; however, the government has more things to do . Therefore, if private organization make research on science theories, they could find good result. Secondly, sometimes research takes many years to complete, whilst the government is only allocated for certain period of time. As a result, when authority changes the agenda of research may change with time. Thereby, It would be great if these researches conducted under the private organization since they have fix authority and they have fix target.

On the other hand, despite these advantages, this situation can be considered disadvantages. Some people believe that if private authority is conducting all the research, it would lead to monopoly. To explain this, these companies can use these findings for their own purpose and they could cause a mass destruction on the earth. Moreover, private companies also violate the law and regulation in order to complete their research such as using animals for medical science. This can lead to fetal diseases. Nevertheless, this might be overcome if the government keep check on private organisations.

To conclusion, although drawbacks of this situation are undeniable, these are not as significant as the benefits of getting one authority for longer researches, and the government can also make some law and regulation on them so they would research ethically.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

It is important to note that the student responded to a completely different prompt than the one provided in the instructions (writing about private scientific research instead of plastic pollution). However, following the evaluation guidelines, when a response is off-topic, we must assess the writing based on what the student actually produced. The writer addresses the prompt regarding private companies versus government funding for scientific research, presenting a clear position that the advantages outweigh the disadvantages. Both sides of the argument are discussed, with points raised about efficiency, duration, and potential monopolies. While some ideas like animal testing and 'fetal diseases' are slightly confused or under-developed, the main arguments are identifiable and relevant to the topic the student chose to write about. Therefore, a Band 6.0 is appropriate as the task is addressed with relevant ideas, though the actual prompt instructions were missed.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The response is organized into clear paragraphs with an introduction, two body paragraphs presenting opposing views, and a conclusion. Cohesive devices are utilized to signal transitions, such as 'On the one hand', 'On the other hand', and 'To conclusion'. However, cohesion is at times mechanical or faulty, as seen in the unidiomatic phrase 'To conclusion' instead of 'In conclusion'. Referencing and logical progression are generally maintained, but some linking words feel repetitive or slightly unnatural. Paragraphing is used sufficiently and appropriately to separate distinct points, resulting in a coherent overall arrangement that meets the requirements for a Band 6.0.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The student demonstrates an adequate vocabulary range for the task, attempting less common lexical items such as 'monopoly', 'mass destruction', and 'ethical'. However, there are noticeable inaccuracies in word choice, collocation, and phrasing throughout the text. Examples include 'independence organization' instead of 'independent organizations', 'make research' instead of 'conduct research', 'fix authority' instead of 'fixed authority', and 'fetal diseases' instead of 'fatal diseases'. Additionally, spelling and morphological errors occur ('keep check' instead of 'keep a check', 'make some law and regulation'). These errors do not impede overall communication but prevent the vocabulary score from reaching higher bands, fitting the Band 6.0 descriptor.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The essay displays a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, including conditional-like clauses and subordinate clauses (e.g., 'While there are few disadvantages of this, this could be outweighed by its advantages'). However, there are frequent grammatical errors in verb forms, articles, and prepositions. Examples include 'if private organization make research' (plural/singular mismatch and verb choice), 'whilst the government is only allocated' (passive voice misuse), and 'if the government keep check' (subject-verb agreement). Despite these errors, meaning is generally clear and communication is rarely impeded. The control of grammar is consistent with a Band 5.5 to 6.0 level.

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.