Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-09-25

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)

Some individuals argue that educational institutes spent huge amount of time for teaching facts and theories and not enough on practical skills. I agree with this view because theoretical knowledge is important but student also need practical abilities for employment and everyday life.

One major reason why practical skills should receive greater attention is that they help students to apply in real-life situations. Memorising knowledge may help them to get good score in examination, but it does not mean that they can use it very effectively in day to day life. For instance, A business student who is studying Business Administration have proper theoretical knowledge of managing company or a firm, but without having practical experience it will be very hard for him to run a company or manage a firm. Learner may struggle when enter in workplace. Therefore combining of hands-on activities and lessons are must.

Moreover, another factful point is that practical knowledge can develop different skills which essential for personal and professional success. Communication, teamwork, leadership and problem-solving are difficult to gain through books. It requires practice and real life experience to develop. Schools and universities provide some projects, internships, presentations and work place training to help them in developing these abilities. For example, students who are studying healthcare have knowledge of patient care which they learn in classroom, but practicing how to communicate with patient or client and perform care to them under suoervision would give them greater confidence in real life working experience.

However, this does not mean that theoritical knowledge and learning facts are not required and should be removed from education. Theoretical foundation is necessary before applying practical skills. For example, a healthcare worker must have knowledge of body organs and diseases before going to perform skills. So that, educational bodies should make perfect balance between academic knowledge and practical training rather than just focusing on one particular thing.

In conclusion, I agree that too much focusing on learning facts are not giving success, but balance between practical abilities and knowledge from books help pupils to be the best and survive in personal and professional life very easily and successfully.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.0

The response addresses all parts of the task by clearly stating a position agreeing with the prompt and supporting it with relevant arguments and examples. The writer highlights both the importance of practical skills in employment and everyday life, and acknowledges the necessity of theoretical foundations, such as healthcare workers understanding body organs before practical training. Ideas are well developed and extended, as seen in the business administration and healthcare examples. The position remains clear throughout the essay. The response meets the criteria for Band 7, as all parts are addressed and ideas are extended and supported effectively, showing good depth of thought.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.0

The essay displays clear logical organisation and progression throughout. Each paragraph has a distinct focus, beginning with an introduction, moving to two body paragraphs supporting the main argument, a concession paragraph, and a concluding summary. Cohesive devices such as 'One major reason', 'Moreover', 'However', and 'In conclusion' are used to connect ideas effectively, though some transitions feel slightly mechanical or formulaic. Paragraphing is used appropriately to structure the argument. The progression from theoretical knowledge to practical application flows logically. Overall, the essay meets the requirements for a Band 7 in Coherence and Cohesion due to its clear overall progression and logical management of cohesive devices.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

The student uses an adequate and generally appropriate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully attempting less common items such as 'theoretical knowledge', 'practical abilities', 'hands-on activities', and 'professional success'. However, there are some noticeable word choice and collocation errors, such as 'educational institutes spent huge amount of time for teaching' instead of 'spent a huge amount of time teaching', 'factful point' instead of 'valid point', and 'suoervision' (spelling error). While these occasional inaccuracies show limitations, the vocabulary is sufficient to convey the message clearly without impeding communication, placing the response solidly at Band 6.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

The writer uses a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating attempts at subordination and relative clauses, such as 'A business student who is studying Business Administration have proper theoretical knowledge...' However, there are several grammatical and agreement errors throughout the text, including subject-verb agreement issues ('student also need', 'Business Administration have', 'Learner may struggle when enter'), missing articles ('when enter in workplace'), and minor punctuation slips. Despite these errors, the meaning is rarely obscured and communication is maintained. The control of grammar is consistent with a Band 6, where a mix of structures is used alongside frequent minor errors that do not impede comprehension.

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

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