Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 14 · 2026-08-22

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Many people work long hours, leaving very little time for leisure activities.

Does this situation have more advantages or more disadvantages?

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

 

Student answer (Band 5.5)

In recent years, there has been a debate going on whether siting on chair for long time and not enjoying life is beneficial or not. In my point of view, people who work more are not satisfied with their lives because they are not enjoying their lives. I think there is way more pros for this statement in comparison to cons, which I will be discussing in the following paragraphs.

To begin with the negative side of the situation, I think individual who works more is only because they want to live the dream life and earning to secure their future. As according to them recreational activities are waste of time and energy. A good example of this is my father as he do not like to go out and spend some time with his own company.

I strongly believe that, having some specific time for leisure activities is really important because it helps to reduce physical and mental stress from live. Additionally, human being have rights to enjoy every stage of their lives. so if they are not enjoying current time of life they are missing out a lot of experiences in lives. For example, in a study it shows that people who travel and explore in their 20s and 30s they live less stressed in their 50s and 60s.

To conclude, I personally believe that taking some specific time to enjoy life is way more significant to work hard as no one knows what is going to happen in the future so I trust living in the present is better and best way to enjoy life.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses the prompt, but the position is somewhat contradictory. You state that you believe there are 'way more pros' for working long hours, yet the subsequent paragraphs argue almost exclusively for the importance of leisure and the negative impact of overworking. This inconsistency makes your overall stance unclear. While you provide some relevant ideas, such as the impact on mental health and the importance of work-life balance, the development is limited. The example regarding your father is personal but does not fully support the argument about the advantages or disadvantages of the situation in a broader societal context. To improve, ensure your main arguments align clearly with your stated position and provide more detailed, logical support for your claims.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay is organised into paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the structure. However, the use of cohesive devices is often mechanical or slightly inaccurate. For example, 'To begin with the negative side of the situation' is used, but the following paragraph actually discusses the motivation for working hard, which is not clearly a 'negative' side in the way you frame it. Transitions like 'Additionally' and 'To conclude' are present but sometimes feel forced. The progression of ideas is occasionally disjointed, particularly in the transition between the introduction and the body paragraphs. Improving the variety and precision of your linking words will help the flow of your writing.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

Your vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, allowing you to communicate your ideas clearly. However, there is a lack of range and precision. You rely on basic phrasing such as 'live the dream life', 'waste of time', and 'enjoying their lives', which is repetitive. There are also some minor collocation errors, such as 'siting on chair' (sitting in a chair) and 'stress from live' (stress from life). To reach a higher band, try to incorporate more sophisticated vocabulary related to the topic, such as 'professional burnout', 'sedentary lifestyle', or 'intrinsic motivation', and pay closer attention to word forms and prepositions.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The essay contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors that occasionally distract the reader. Common issues include subject-verb agreement (e.g., 'individual who works... is only because', 'he do not like'), article usage (e.g., 'in a study it shows'), and awkward phrasing (e.g., 'there is way more pros for this statement'). While these errors do not completely impede communication, they occur frequently enough to lower the score. To improve, focus on mastering basic sentence construction, specifically subject-verb agreement and the correct use of articles, before attempting more complex structures.

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

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