Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-09-08

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

In many countries, people are now living longer than ever before. Some people say an aging population creates problems for governments. Other people think there are benefits if society has more elderly people.

To what extent do the advantages of having an aging population outweigh the disadvantages?

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

Student answer (Band 6.0)

While some opine that an aging population creates obstacles for governments, others argue that aging population benefits a society. However, there prevails several reasons of the drawbacks of having more elderly people than a certain limit, therefore the disadvantages outweigh the advantages.

On the one hand, an aging population has concentrated more experience and expertise in a specific field through lifelong work, efforts, events. They are valuable to the society by contributing wisdom, influencing others by past mistakes, occurrences and are the best reliable source of living history. They have lived long and understand the land well which is crucial for the socio-cultural development of a country. Any goverment can be benefitted by using their expertise and well understanding in a certain field when it needs. They are also inspiration to the young generation and add defined guidelines for the youth about the growth and development toward a fruitful future.

On the other hand, aging population lack of normal life due to the complexities of different physical and mental obstacles. They do get affected by old age diseases alongside many complications in their physical activity and contribution to the society. They also put economical stress on the goverment due to increased health related expenses. Interestingly, the youth are energetic, enthusiastic and are ready to do anything creatively and act as an agent of change. They are equipped with new ideas, trends, technology and innovation of new things, accounting for the overall growth to the economy and to the people in a greater scale. They also benefits the demographic dividend to a society by bringing new generations to the country.

In my opinion, while aging population are enriched with profound expertise and experiences, they add comparatively little value to the society as compared with the youth. However, there should remain a balance between these two category so it benefits the society and the GDP as well.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response addresses all parts of the prompt and maintains a clear position throughout. The arguments regarding the benefits of experience versus the economic and physical burdens of an aging population are relevant. However, the development of these ideas is somewhat superficial. For instance, the mention of 'lifelong work' and 'socio-cultural development' is a good start, but it lacks specific examples or deeper analysis to fully support the claims. The conclusion provides a summary but could have been more effectively linked to the main body paragraphs to strengthen the overall argument. The response is well-structured and meets the requirements of the task.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay is logically organized with clear paragraphing. Each paragraph has a central theme, and the transition between the advantages and disadvantages is handled well using 'On the one hand' and 'On the other hand'. However, the use of cohesive devices is sometimes mechanical or slightly repetitive. For example, the phrase 'aging population' is used frequently as a subject, which could be improved with better referencing or synonyms. Additionally, some sentences within paragraphs feel slightly disjointed, such as the transition between the physical obstacles of the elderly and the economic stress on the government. Overall, the progression of ideas is clear and easy to follow.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, allowing the writer to express ideas clearly. There are some attempts at using more sophisticated vocabulary, such as 'profound expertise' and 'demographic dividend'. However, there are instances of awkward word choices and collocations, such as 'there prevails several reasons of the drawbacks' and 'add defined guidelines'. These errors do not impede communication but indicate a need for more precise usage. The range of vocabulary is sufficient to convey the intended meaning, but it lacks the flexibility and precision required for a higher band score.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The essay demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the writer attempts complex sentences, there are frequent grammatical errors, particularly with subject-verb agreement (e.g., 'aging population lack of normal life', 'they also benefits') and article usage. Punctuation is generally functional, but there are minor errors that affect the flow. Despite these errors, the meaning remains clear throughout the response. To improve, the writer should focus on ensuring subject-verb agreement and refining the use of articles and prepositions to achieve greater accuracy in more complex structures.

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

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.