Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-08-12

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Some people say that parents should encourage their children to take part in organised group activities in their free time. Others say that it is important for children to learn how to occupy themselves on their own.

Discuss both these views and give your own opinion.

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

 

Student answer (Band 6.5)

Nowadays, parents are more conscious about their children's free time. Some people believe that children should spend their free time in group activities while, others believe that children should decide it by themself. I believe children should independently decide to spend their free time because it help them to explore different activities.

On the one hand, some parents believe that parent should enroll their children in group activities which could help in their career. Many schools offer after-school activities which include STEM clubs, and art classes. It helps children to learn different skills based on their interest. For example, many students start gaining interest in coding while attending STEM classes. This helps them to earn money by taking freelancing projects while they are studying. Therefore, enrolling children in group activities help them to build skills.

On the other hand, some people believe that children should have freedom to spend their free time based on their preference. This help students to explore different activities based on their interest such as playing sports. For example, some children choose to spend their free time on different sports. Eventually, they find the best sport for themselves. This consistent practice makes a better player and might be part of state level tournaments. This describes that if children find activity for their free time by themselves, they can be better over a time.

To conclude, although group activities help children to build skills which could be helpful in their careers, allowing children to spend their free time based on their preference help them to go though the process of choosing right thing for themselves.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The response addresses both sides of the argument and provides a clear personal opinion in the introduction and conclusion. The ideas are relevant, such as the benefits of skill acquisition in group settings versus the autonomy of self-directed play. However, the development of these ideas is somewhat repetitive and lacks depth. For instance, the argument for self-directed activities focuses heavily on sports, which limits the scope of the discussion. To reach a higher band, you should provide more varied examples or explore the psychological or social benefits of independent play more thoroughly. The position is consistent throughout, but the supporting arguments could be more nuanced.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The essay is logically organized with a clear introduction, two body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate the two viewpoints. Cohesive devices such as 'On the one hand', 'On the other hand', and 'To conclude' are used to guide the reader. However, some transitions are slightly mechanical, and there are minor issues with referencing, such as 'This help students' (should be 'helps') and 'This describes that' (which is an awkward way to introduce a point). Improving the variety of linking words and ensuring smoother transitions between sentences would enhance the flow.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, allowing the message to be conveyed clearly. You use some topic-specific terms like 'after-school activities', 'STEM clubs', and 'freelancing projects'. However, the range is somewhat limited, and there is repetition of basic phrases like 'spend their free time' and 'based on their interest'. There are also minor errors in word choice, such as 'decide it by themself' (should be 'decide for themselves') and 'go though the process' (should be 'go through'). To improve, try to incorporate more sophisticated synonyms and collocations to demonstrate a wider lexical range.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are frequent grammatical errors that affect the accuracy of the writing. Common issues include subject-verb agreement (e.g., 'it help them', 'enrolling children... help them', 'This help students') and pronoun usage ('by themself'). While these errors do not impede communication, they are persistent throughout the text. To achieve a higher band, you need to demonstrate better control over basic grammatical rules and attempt more complex sentence structures with greater accuracy.

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

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