Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-08-22
IELTS Writing Task 2 question
In many countries today, crime novels and TV crime dramas are becoming more and more popular. Why do you think these books and TV shows are popular? What is your opinion of crime fiction and TV crime dramas?
Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.
Student answer (Band 5.5)
In few nations today, films and novel on crime are becoming most popular because people like to solve mysteries but I don’t think so it is a good habit to watch crime stories either for adults or children’s. My opinion and reasons will be discussed in upcoming paragraphs.
First and foremost reason of watching crime stories is interest in solve mysteries it’s quite interesting to see how anyone will be punished for any crime. In addition to this some people want to do crime like murder of theft and they are looking for strategies to do that in order to find that method of crime watch or read crime novels. Moreover, these are the real stories which people can enjoy more as compared to fictional stories. Furthermore, people want to be aware from any crime therefore to avoid that type of situation and to be more careful they want to see that.
From my point of view, I don’t think so watching crime fiction stories is good at all for people. The reason behind this is that they will learn about the crime and in their minds that will going on all day. To some extent once in a while let’s go to see, but for every day it can disturb anyone and people can do crime on behalf of these stories. I know it could be educational for people, but excessive of watching the series is not good at all.
To conclude, although people are having interest in the crime stories and novels, but it can impact children’s and adults in a negative way
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The response addresses both parts of the prompt: why crime media is popular and your personal opinion. However, the development of ideas is limited. For example, your point about people watching crime shows to learn how to commit crimes is a significant generalization that lacks logical support or nuance. The argument is somewhat repetitive, and the position, while clear, is not fully explored with sophisticated reasoning. To improve, ensure that each body paragraph provides a well-reasoned explanation rather than a list of brief, somewhat disconnected points. Expanding on the psychological appeal of mystery or the societal impact of media would strengthen the response.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The essay is organized into paragraphs, which is a positive step. However, the use of cohesive devices is often mechanical or slightly inaccurate. Phrases like 'First and foremost reason of' and 'In addition to this' are used, but the flow between sentences is sometimes disjointed. For instance, the transition from discussing the popularity of crime shows to your personal opinion in the third paragraph feels abrupt. Additionally, the referencing is occasionally unclear, such as the phrase 'let’s go to see' in the third paragraph, which makes the logical progression difficult to follow. Improving the variety and precision of linking words will help the ideas flow more naturally.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task but lacks the precision and range required for a higher band. You rely on basic phrasing such as 'good habit', 'do crime', and 'not good at all'. There are also some awkward collocations, such as 'excessive of watching' instead of 'excessive watching'. While the meaning is generally clear, the lack of more sophisticated or topic-specific vocabulary (e.g., 'criminology', 'desensitization', 'vicarious thrill') limits the score. To improve, try to incorporate more precise academic vocabulary and focus on natural collocations rather than simple word combinations.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The essay contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors that occasionally impede readability. Issues include subject-verb agreement ('children’s' used as a plural noun), missing articles ('murder of theft'), and awkward phrasing ('that will going on all day'). Punctuation is also inconsistent, particularly with comma usage. While the meaning is usually understandable, the frequency of these errors prevents the writing from reaching a higher band. Focusing on basic sentence construction and proofreading for common errors like pluralization and verb tense consistency would be highly beneficial.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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