Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-10-15

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)

Many people believed that a high amount of learning facts are inculcated to students studying across the primary schools until collegiate rather than providing opportunities for learning practical skills.However, I argue that learning practical skill should be prioritized in schools.

Firstly, people nowadays are too focused on learning facts. As such, schools put more emphasis on language,mathematical problems and science. For example, a student from grade six are expected to be able to create challenging essays and solve high level of mathematical equations. As a result, students tend to skip class, become bored and stop schooling. Hence, this would result in poor engagement in school.

Secondly, I strongly believe that practical skills are paramount towards an individuals' success. For instance, if youngsters are exposed to engaging activities such as play based learning, independent learning, self exploration, they are more likely to develop genuine love for learning. Activities such as teaching students how to cook,plant,sewing clothes are one of the practical skills they should master.

While both sentiments are important,schools should ensure a curriculum with balance opportunities for facts and practical skills. Curriculum should be assessed and revisited by local school boards and other officials from department of education. In addition, trainings should be mandatory for teachers to be knowledgeable about the strategies for balancing academics and life skills. Teachers should integrate life application across the subjects and encourage learners to participate.

Overall, education should incorporate both academic and life skills effectively and efficiently in one's life as it greatlt influence someone for survival.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

Your position is clear: you argue that practical skills should receive greater priority, while your conclusion recognises the value of balancing them with academic learning. The response addresses the question and gives relevant reasons, including student disengagement and the benefits of activities such as cooking and sewing. However, some points are asserted rather than fully explained. For example, the link between fact-focused lessons and students skipping school needs clearer support, and the practical-skills examples could be connected more directly to skills students need beyond school. The final paragraphs also shift towards recommending a balanced curriculum, so clarify whether you agree that practical skills are currently underemphasised and explain that position consistently. More developed examples and reasoning would strengthen the response.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The essay has a clear overall arrangement: an introduction, two reason-based body paragraphs, a paragraph proposing solutions, and a conclusion. Sequencing phrases such as “Firstly,” “Secondly,” and “Overall” make the progression easy to follow, and the ideas generally move from the problem to possible improvements. This meets the lower-band expectation of coherent organisation and shows some features of stronger progression. However, links between claims are occasionally abrupt: the first body paragraph moves from demanding academic work to skipping class without explaining the connection, while the third paragraph introduces curriculum policy and teacher training quite suddenly. Some transitions, including “As such” and “Hence,” feel mechanical. Develop the links between ideas and use referencing and transitions more naturally to make the argument flow.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of topic vocabulary, including “practical skills,” “curriculum,” “independent learning,” and “school boards.” There are also attempts at more formal or less common expressions, such as “paramount” and “inculcated,” showing ambition. However, some choices are inaccurate or unnatural in context: “a high amount of learning facts,” “inculcated to students,” and “life application across the subjects” do not express the ideas idiomatically. “Play based learning” and “self exploration” would also benefit from more conventional phrasing. Spelling and word-form slips such as “greatlt” and “individuals'” reduce precision. Aim for accurate collocations and check spelling and apostrophes; this will make your vocabulary more flexible and natural without requiring unnecessarily complex words.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, including conditional structures such as “if youngsters are exposed to engaging activities … they are more likely to develop” and a concession beginning “While both sentiments are important.” Meaning is generally understandable, but some grammatical errors remain. For example, “a student … are expected” has subject–verb disagreement, and “as it greatlt influence” contains errors in both the verb form and agreement. Other examples include “an individuals' success” and “a curriculum with balance opportunities,” where grammatical forms are not controlled. Punctuation spacing is also inconsistent, particularly after commas and full stops. Review agreement, articles, possessives, and sentence punctuation, then proofread each sentence. Greater accuracy across these structures would make the argument easier to read.

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