Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-08-19

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 6.0)

Some people argued that nowadays, universities and schools spent time on learning facts rather than learning practical skills. I completely agree with this statement. This essay will discuss the reason behind my agreement.

To begin with, large number of universities and schools follow the rule of reading and writing instead of doing practical work. They follow the books instead of doing practical skills. In today’s era, it becomes compulsory for students to read and learn the things that are written in the books already. For instance, there are number of chapters in the books that are not important to learn because they are not related with our daily lives. But, student are forced to learn that all theory instead of doing some practical skills.

Furthermore, nowadays, universities and schools only focus on theoretical exams of students. Students are tend to learn all the syllabus and then prepare for the exam. For instance, when I was in my school I forced to do learn the formulas of mathematics and then do the exams but nowadays that formulas are not important for my daily lives.

In my point of view, universities and schools should focus on practical learning. For example, they should conduct a reading class in which all the students have to read anything so that their reading skills can be improved.

In conclusion, It is true that universities is spending too much time on learning facts instead on learning practical skills. Since, learning facts is also important for some level but learning practical skills is more important in today’s lives.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response addresses the prompt and maintains a clear position throughout. However, the development of ideas is somewhat repetitive and lacks depth. For instance, the argument that school subjects are 'not important' is asserted but not sufficiently explained or supported with robust reasoning. The examples provided, such as the mention of mathematics formulas, are personal and relevant but remain superficial. To reach a higher band, you should expand on the 'why' and 'how'—for example, by discussing how specific practical skills like critical thinking or financial literacy would better prepare students for the modern workforce compared to rote memorization.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, and there is a clear introduction and conclusion. Cohesive devices are used, such as 'To begin with,' 'Furthermore,' and 'In conclusion,' though some transitions feel mechanical or repetitive. The progression of ideas is generally easy to follow, but the internal structure of the paragraphs could be improved. For example, the second paragraph jumps between general statements about schools and personal anecdotes without a smooth transition. Improving the variety of linking words and ensuring each paragraph focuses on a single, well-developed point would enhance the flow.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is adequate for the task but lacks the range and precision required for higher bands. You rely on basic phrasing such as 'learning facts' and 'doing practical skills' repeatedly throughout the text. There are also some minor collocation errors, such as 'doing practical skills' (better: 'acquiring' or 'developing' practical skills) and 'not related with' (better: 'not related to'). To improve, try to incorporate more academic collocations and synonyms to avoid repetition and demonstrate a more sophisticated command of the language.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The essay contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors that occasionally distract the reader. Common issues include subject-verb agreement (e.g., 'universities and schools spent time' instead of 'spend time'), article usage (e.g., 'there are number of chapters'), and awkward phrasing (e.g., 'Students are tend to learn'). While these errors do not prevent the reader from understanding your meaning, they indicate a lack of control over more complex structures. Focusing on consistent verb tense usage and refining sentence construction will help improve your accuracy.

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

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