Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-09-17

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)

It is often argued that all levels of education, from primary schools to universities spend handsome amount of time on learning facts instead of improving practical skills. I disagree with the statement because learning practical skills allows children to be more creative and increases job opportunities in the future.

Learning facts in all levels of education, from primary schools to universities is important for the core knowledge of subjects. However, implementing theoretical knowledge into real-time projects increases children's creativity. That is to say basic syntax mentioned in a programming textbook is not understandable to children unless they run these code snippet on computer and see outputs in real-time. In this way, children can implement their ideas and create something beneficial to the society. For example, in North America coaching institutes allocate two hours of practical sessions for every child, where they can perform different activities that they learned in the classroom. As a result, those children who constantly participate in practical session are more creative.

Spending too much time learning practical skills creates various job opportunities for children. This is because, having knowledge about experiments regarding different chemicals in school and university, children could choose different fields to pursue their career such as scientists or production of medicine. For instance, children who have knowledge about how one chemical reacts with another substance can choose a career in the industry where medicine is produced and can use the knowledge they could invent medicine to cure life-threating diseases such as Cancer or Corona.

Overall, learning facts is important while studying in primary schools to universities is beneficial to improve core knowledge about subjects. I believe practical knowledge allows students to be more creative and have different fields for work in the future.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0

The student addresses the prompt by clearly stating a position ("I disagree with the statement") and supporting it with two main arguments: creativity and future job opportunities. The ideas are extended and supported with relevant examples, such as programming and practical sessions in North America. While the prompt asks about spending "too much time" on facts versus practical skills, the student frames their response well by arguing why practical skills should be emphasised more, effectively answering the underlying question. The position is maintained throughout the essay, meeting the criteria for a Band 7.0.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The essay presents a clear logical organisation and progression throughout. Each paragraph has a distinct focus: introduction, body paragraph one on creativity, body paragraph two on career opportunities, and a conclusion. Cohesive devices are used reasonably well, such as "However," "That is to say," and "For instance," though some transitions feel slightly mechanical. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate ideas. Referencing is mostly clear, although the conclusion slightly repeats previous phrasing rather than synthesising the argument. This performance aligns comfortably with Band 6.5 to 7.0, and is best represented by a Band 6.5.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The student demonstrates an adequate and flexible range of vocabulary suitable for the task. Less common lexical items are attempted, such as "core knowledge," "implementing theoretical knowledge," and "life-threatening diseases." However, there are some noticeable inaccuracies in word choice and collocation, such as "spend handsome amount of time" (instead of "spend a handsome amount" or "spend a considerable amount") and "these code snippet" (should be plural "these code snippets"). Despite these occasional errors, the vocabulary is sufficient to convey meaning clearly, earning a Band 6.0.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The writer uses a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, including conditional and relative clauses (e.g., "...children who have knowledge about how one chemical reacts with another substance can choose a career..."). However, there are several grammatical errors and punctuation issues throughout the text. For instance, missing articles ("spend handsome amount," "on computer"), pluralisation errors ("all levels of education... spend"), and preposition errors ("learning facts in all levels" instead of "at all levels"). While these errors do not impede overall communication, they occur frequently enough to prevent the essay from reaching a Band 7.0, making Band 6.0 the most appropriate score.

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

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