Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-10-09

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)

In several nations, many individuals are keen to know about the history of the home or apartment they live because they are curious to find out the past of that area. To do a research, a lot of people often inquire from their neighbours.

One of the main reasons why people are concerned about knowing history is that individuals are inquisitive and this is a proved evidence from the scientific research that human beings are thought to be curious about things which have happened in past or will happen in future. Residents who mainly reside in remote areas, often hear superstitions or local myths from local residents which makes them curious, and this curiosity triggers their innate mindset to do a research. This eventually helps them find out if the stories were true or designed in a way that makes everybody feel fearful and uncomfortable. For example, in Africa, many residents are afraid because they often hear about superstitions related to the presence of ghosts in their house.

Inquiring from the local residents or former residents who sold them house is the only way to find out history about house or building they reside in. This is because many people have already been living in that particular area since decades, and it is possible that they might be aware of things that happened in that residential house or apartment. However, some people might conceal the information in order to sale the house or flat, others may tell the authentic historical events that happened. Take younger children as an example who are more curious than adults. They ask their age group children about the past as if they are experiencing horror movie in real life.

In conclusion, numerous people are inquisitive about knowing everything that happened before they bought home or flat and they do research by reaching out to those who are living in that residential area for years.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You address both questions: curiosity and local stories are offered as reasons, while asking neighbours and former residents is presented as a research method. The example of ghost stories in Africa helps illustrate why residents might investigate, so the response is relevant. However, the reasons are quite narrow and overlap around curiosity, and the claim that asking local people is “the only way” is too absolute. The research discussion would be more complete if it included other practical sources, such as property records, local archives, libraries, or online databases. The children example is not clearly connected to researching a building’s history. Develop a wider range of relevant ideas and explain how each method could help answer the question.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure, with an introduction, separate paragraphs for reasons and research, and a conclusion. This makes the main stages of the answer easy to identify. Some progression is weakened by repeated references to curiosity and by ideas that do not connect clearly: the point about children asking their peers, for instance, does not explain how this helps establish a building’s history. Linking phrases such as “For example” and “However” are used, but connections between claims are sometimes mechanical or unclear. The conclusion mainly repeats the introduction rather than drawing the two parts together. Use clearer topic sentences, group related points, and make each example directly support the paragraph’s central idea.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant vocabulary for the topic, including “superstitions,” “local myths,” “former residents,” and “historical events.” These choices help communicate the subject, and the meaning is generally understandable. However, the range is limited by repeated words and phrases such as “curious,” “history,” and “residents.” Some combinations are unnatural or imprecise, including “do a research,” “find out history about house,” and “authentic historical events.” The phrase “proved evidence” is also redundant. Aim for more accurate collocations and vary repeated terms—for example, use “investigate a property’s past” or “historical records.” This would make the response more precise and natural without requiring unnecessarily complex vocabulary.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and complex sentences, including clauses beginning “because,” “which,” and “in order to,” and the overall meaning can usually be followed. However, errors occur across sentence patterns and sometimes make relationships less clear. Examples include “the home or apartment they live” (missing “in”), “which makes them curious” after the plural subject “myths,” and “who sold them house” (missing an article). There are also problems with verb forms and sentence construction, such as “in order to sale the house” and the long sentence beginning “Residents who mainly reside in remote areas,” which needs clearer punctuation and agreement. Review articles, prepositions, subject–verb agreement, and infinitive forms, then check complex sentences for a clear subject and verb.

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