Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 14 · 2026-09-26

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Some people think it's better to choose friends who always have the same opinions as them. Other people believe it's good to have friends who sometimes disagree with them.

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)

There are some people who choose their friends based on having similar opinions while others value people who have their own train of thoughts and don't agree with every opinion in front of them. I believe it is always good to have friends who sometimes disagree with you.

The idea of being with the like minded people is always fascinating. You can share alot of things with them without feeling judged at any point. You feel comfortable around them. A person feels a lot closer to someone whose views align with theirs. Some people are just bad at confrontations, when someone calls them out or disagrees with them they don't take it very well.

I firmly believe in order to grow you need to surround yourself with people who can voice their opinion whenever they disagree with you. Having someone with a different take on things than yourself really gives you something to think about. A lot of times when your're in the middle of a tricky situation, your thought process is different. In the longer run it might not be good for you, but if you have a friend who can show you a different perspective you will realise how beneficial it was for you.

Friends with different perspectives also help you to deal with other people differently. There was a time when I used to react abrubtly with my junior colleagues, I talked about it with a friend and her perspective made me more conscious about how to treat my peers, that made my relationship with my colleagues much better and a more productive work environment. If it were'nt for my friend I still would've thought that they were the problem and not me.

Choosing to be with the like minded people is safe and easy. There is never a room for growth, While Interacting with differently opinionated people is challenging but it broadens your perspective on things, It is a way of learning about how different people think in similar situations. It is one of the many ways to improve yourself and work on yourself.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

The response addresses all parts of the task by discussing both views—choosing like-minded friends versus friends with differing opinions—and clearly presents the writer's position in the introduction and body paragraphs. Ideas are extended and supported, such as when the writer explores the comfort of like-minded peers versus the growth facilitated by differing perspectives. A relevant personal example regarding junior colleagues is provided to support the argument. Although some ideas could have been further expanded to reach the highest bands, the task is fully and clearly addressed throughout, meeting the requirements for a Band 7.0.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The essay displays clear logical organisation and progression throughout. Each paragraph has a distinct focus, starting with the introduction of both views and the writer's stance, moving into the discussion of comfortable like-minded friendships, exploring the benefits of disagreement, providing a personal anecdote, and concluding with a summary. Cohesive devices such as 'The idea of being', 'A lot of times', and 'While Interacting' are used reasonably well, although paragraphing and transitions could be slightly more polished to achieve a higher band. Overall, the logical flow is easy to follow, making this a solid Band 7.0 performance.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

The student uses an adequate and generally appropriate range of vocabulary for the task. Phrases like 'train of thoughts', 'confrontations', 'tricky situation', and 'broadens your perspective' demonstrate sufficient flexibility and precision. There are occasional word choice and spelling inaccuracies, such as 'alot' (instead of 'a lot'), 'your're' (instead of 'you're'), and 'abrubtly' (instead of 'abruptly'). However, these minor errors do not impede communication, and the writer successfully attempts some less common lexical items, fitting comfortably within the Band 6.5 or 7.0 range.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

The writer employs a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating good control over sentence structure with constructions like 'There are some people who choose their friends based on...'. Punctuation and grammatical control are generally good, though there are occasional lapses, such as comma splices ('There is never a room for growth, While Interacting...') and minor punctuation slips. The majority of simple sentences are error-free, and complex attempts do not impede communication. This performance aligns well with the Band 6.5 descriptors.

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.