Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-09-01

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

In some countries, more and more people are becoming interested in finding out about the history of the house or building they live in.

What are the reasons for this?

How can people research this?

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

Student answer (Band 5.5)

People increasingly are becoming more and more interested in finding out about the history of their homes or buildings where the live. In this essay I will be discussing what are the potential reasons of it and how people can research about it. At the end I would also be sharing my own point of view based on my knowledge and experience.

This is due to the fact people are often concerned about their safety and privacy. Especially before buying or renting a house they would want to make sure that the property they are moving in had not seen any past disturbing events. Their could be more reasons like if someone wants to rent out their home or is willing to sell, they would check the property history and try to evaluate the current price, before they sell or rent it out.

Individuals can explore about the past of their homes or buildings through interacting with local communities or contacting local police station. Now people often use internet to evaluate their properties and check if it had any past prominent events. Property service stations can also provide individuals with immense information regarding their properties past.

In my personal experience if I want to live in a property I would definitely research on the past of it. I will try my best, to not to live in a place which had any bad past event. On the other hand if I want to sell or rent out my property I would check how the prices fluctuated in the past.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses both parts of the prompt: reasons for interest in building history and methods of research. However, the development of these ideas is quite limited. The reasons provided—safety, privacy, and property valuation—are relevant but lack depth or specific examples. The research methods mentioned, such as 'interacting with local communities' or 'property service stations,' are vague. To reach a higher band, you need to expand on your points with more detailed explanations or concrete illustrations. The essay is quite short, barely meeting the minimum requirement, which restricts the depth of your analysis.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay is organised into clear paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the structure. However, the use of cohesive devices is somewhat mechanical and repetitive. For instance, the transition between ideas often relies on simple structures like 'This is due to the fact' or 'On the other hand.' There is a lack of sophisticated linking words to connect sentences and ideas more fluidly. While the progression of ideas is logical, the overall flow feels a bit disjointed due to the limited range of cohesive devices employed.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task but lacks the range and precision required for higher bands. You rely on common, everyday language such as 'bad past event' or 'immense information,' which are not the most natural collocations in this context. There is little attempt to use less common or academic vocabulary. To improve, focus on learning topic-specific collocations related to real estate, historical research, and urban development. The repetition of basic words also limits your score in this criterion.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

There are several grammatical errors throughout the text that occasionally distract the reader. Examples include 'where the live' (should be 'where they live'), 'Their could be' (should be 'There could be'), and 'research on the past of it' (should be 'research its past'). You rely heavily on simple sentence structures. While you attempt some complex sentences, they are often marred by errors, such as 'I will try my best, to not to live in a place.' Increasing your control over complex structures and proofreading for basic subject-verb agreement and word order will significantly improve your score.

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

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