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

Some people spend most of their lives living close to where they were born.

What might be the reasons for this?

What are the advantages and disadvantages?

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

 

Student answer (Band 6.5)

It is persistently observed over the time that a few individuals carry a deep desire to reside either in their birthplaces or somewhere close to it. Although kinship and home connection are the reasons behind their desire, from my standpoint, It is definitely disadvantageous for them as it hinders their personal and professional growth.

The major reason of this scenario is sense of belonging. Places close to birthplaces are hold sentimental values to a person and are also associated with their kins and community. Owing to this, everyone shares a deep connection with their places which makes them long for those even when they are adults. Additionally, these areas also contain the same culture and traditions as their own hometowns which build their strong connection with the places. To cite an example, International students in any foreign nation always desire to go back to their country and settle in or nearby their hometown or even anywhere in their country, just because of the lack of connectivity and kinship in foreign nations.

Nonetheless, I strongly consider it as negative development. One of the most crucial reasons behind this is lack of opportunities. If people are stick to the areas they are born in, there will be less chances of personal and professional growth; since, everyone is living in their comfort zones and are satisfied with whatever they have, they will never be able to figure out about their real potential. This not only impacts the career growth of a person but also hinders skills development such as confidence and financial independence. To cite an example, I am an international student in Canada and am exploring new challenges everyday to have a successful career and an independent life. However, my school friends are back in India with same knowledge and lifestyle; not because they have lack of resources for being in Canada, just because they are comfortable in their routines that they want to grab more opportunities to grow further in life.

Taking everything into account, I ultimately arrive at the conclusion that despite the sense of connection and belonging offered by hometowns, everyone should get out out their comfort zones to grab opportunities which develops them personally and in their careers as well.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The response addresses all parts of the prompt: reasons for staying near one's birthplace, and the advantages and disadvantages. The position is clear from the introduction. However, the development is slightly unbalanced. While you provide reasons and disadvantages, the 'advantages' are only briefly mentioned as 'sentimental values' and 'kinship' within the first body paragraph. To reach a higher band, you should explicitly dedicate more space to the benefits (e.g., stability, lower cost of living, strong support networks) rather than focusing almost exclusively on the negative aspects. The ideas are relevant, but the support for the 'advantages' side is less developed than the 'disadvantages' side.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The essay is logically organized with a clear introduction, two body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Paragraphing is used effectively to separate the reasons from the critical analysis. Cohesive devices such as 'Additionally', 'Nonetheless', and 'Taking everything into account' are used to guide the reader. However, there are some instances where the flow is slightly mechanical or awkward, such as 'It is persistently observed over the time that a few individuals carry a deep desire'. Referencing is generally clear, though some transitions between sentences could be smoother to improve the overall progression of ideas.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.5

You demonstrate a sufficient range of vocabulary to discuss the topic with some precision, using terms like 'kinship', 'sentimental values', and 'professional growth'. There are some minor errors in word choice and collocation, such as 'are hold sentimental values' (should be 'hold sentimental values') and 'if people are stick to' (should be 'if people stick to'). While you attempt to use less common vocabulary, some phrasing feels slightly unnatural. The vocabulary is adequate for the task, but more precise collocations would elevate the score.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While you successfully use complex sentences, there are frequent minor errors in grammar and punctuation. Examples include 'It is definitely disadvantageous for them as it hinders their personal and professional growth' (capitalization error 'It'), 'The major reason of this scenario is sense of belonging' (missing article 'a'), and 'they want to grab more opportunities' (the logic here is slightly confusing). Despite these errors, the meaning is always clear, and the mistakes do not impede communication. Increased attention to subject-verb agreement and article usage would improve accuracy.

See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.

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