Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-08-06

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Some people say that in all levels of education, from primary schools to universities, too much time is spent on learning facts and not enough on learning practical skills.

Do you agree or disagree?

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

 

Student answer (Band 6.5)

Several folks argue that at all steps of learning, from junior till high school even colleges, focus on fact based studies than fostering practical skills in the curriculum. I partially agree with the given statement which I will discuss in the upcoming paragraphs with a relevant conclusion.

One school of thought opines that learning basics about any subject or language give us with a solid foundation for early leaning which goes hand in hand for its implied study. Moreover, fact based education is proven by various scientists and scholars rather than a mere hit and trial method saving ample of time and efforts on the end of the students. For instance, according to the survey conducted by Oxford , written material with evidence build confidence and focus when learning new skills.

On the contrary, hands on experience gives a justification of the conceptual knowledge. Children can use these practical skills to make their lives easier. it also increase engagement while learning as reading from books can be boring and this opens a new scope for understanding difficult theories. For example, physics formulas are easier to understand when incorporated with experiments.

To put it in a nutshell, it is often debated that masses believe from primary till the higher studies, the main focus is upon the factual learning than its practical aspects. I think both have its pros and cons considering facts act as a basic foundation of education which gives us the path and direction to follow so we can learn the implementation practical skills to use it in the future as a helping aid.

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response6.5
Coherence and Cohesion6.5
Lexical Resource6.0
Grammatical Range and Accuracy6.0
Overall6.5

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

You have addressed the prompt by providing a clear position and discussing both sides of the argument. The ideas are relevant, such as the importance of foundational knowledge versus the engagement provided by practical application. However, the development of these ideas is somewhat limited. For example, the mention of 'various scientists and scholars' is vague and lacks specific detail. To reach a higher band, ensure that your supporting examples are more concrete and fully explained. Your position is consistent throughout the essay, and the conclusion effectively summarizes your balanced view, meeting the requirements of the task.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The essay is logically organized with a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. You use cohesive devices such as 'Moreover', 'On the contrary', and 'To put it in a nutshell' to link your ideas. However, some transitions feel slightly mechanical, and there are minor issues with referencing, such as the pronoun 'it' in 'it also increase engagement', where the antecedent is not perfectly clear. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate distinct points. To improve, focus on using a wider variety of cohesive devices and ensuring that the flow between sentences is more natural and less repetitive.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'fostering', 'conceptual knowledge', and 'incorporated'. There are some instances of imprecise word choice, such as 'several folks' (too informal for an academic essay) and 'hit and trial method' (which should be 'trial and error'). Additionally, there are minor collocation errors, such as 'saving ample of time and efforts on the end of the students'. While these errors do not impede communication, they prevent the essay from reaching a higher band. Expanding your vocabulary to include more precise academic collocations would be beneficial.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While your meaning is generally clear, there are several grammatical errors that occur throughout the text. For instance, 'give us with a solid foundation' (incorrect preposition), 'it also increase' (subject-verb agreement error), and 'both have its pros and cons' (pronoun reference error). Punctuation is generally acceptable, but there are some missing spaces after commas and periods. To improve, focus on subject-verb agreement and proofreading for small grammatical slips. Increasing the variety of complex structures while maintaining accuracy will help you achieve a higher score.

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

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