Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-08-13

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

In the future, people may no longer be able to pay for things in shops using cash. All payments may have to be made by card or using phones. Do you think this will happen one day? Why do you think some people might not be happy to give up using cash?

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

 

Student answer (Band 5.5)

In the years ahead, cash may become obsolete, with people relying entirely on bank cards and mobile phones to make payments.This essay will discuss why I think this will happen one day.

The society is becoming a digital world and it has influence a lot of shops. Nowadays, many people enjoys using bank cards or transfers using phone as it is faster and reliable. For example, I recent bought food in my neighbourhood and I did not have money with me, the food vendor told me to make a transfer with my phone and it was less than two minutes she got her funds.

Also, it can be used as an evidence of payment whenever there is a purchase of any product especially when there is a damage of goods. For instance, I made an online payment with my bank card to shop for an iPhone charger, when the dispatch rider brough my goods, he informed me that I have not paid for it, which resulted in presenting my receipt.

In addition, it could result to tracing criminals like like kidnappers and ritualist. To illustrate, two weeks ago, my sister was kidnapped by some group of men, he called and request for a ransome of two million naira to be sent to his bank account. We got his full name and was able to track his location and he was arrested.

In conclusion, I believe that payment with cash is going to be limited soon and bank cards and phone is going to takeover. Overall it is fast, used as an evidence of payment and tracing criminals.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses the prompt by discussing the shift toward a cashless society and providing reasons why people might be reluctant to abandon cash. However, the second part of the prompt—why people might not be happy to give up cash—is largely ignored. Instead, you focused on the benefits of digital payments (evidence, tracing criminals). To improve, you must explicitly address the concerns of those who prefer cash, such as privacy issues, the digital divide for the elderly, or the risk of technical failures. The ideas provided are relevant but lack the necessary balance required for a higher band score.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay is organized into paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the structure. However, the use of cohesive devices is somewhat mechanical and repetitive (e.g., 'For example', 'For instance', 'In addition'). There are also issues with referencing; for example, in the third paragraph, you use 'he' to refer to a group of men, which creates confusion. While there is a logical progression of ideas, the transition between the benefits of digital payments and the prompt's requirement to discuss the reluctance to use cash is missing, making the overall flow feel disjointed.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task but lacks the range and precision needed for a higher score. You rely on basic terms like 'money', 'shops', and 'goods'. There are also some awkward collocations and word choice errors, such as 'influence a lot of shops' instead of 'influenced many businesses' and 'result to tracing' instead of 'result in tracing'. To improve, try to incorporate more topic-specific vocabulary related to finance, technology, and security, and pay closer attention to word forms and collocations.

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 impede clarity. Examples include subject-verb agreement issues ('many people enjoys', 'bank cards and phone is'), tense inconsistencies ('I recent bought'), and article usage errors ('the society', 'a evidence'). Punctuation is also inconsistent, particularly with spacing after commas. While the meaning is generally clear, the frequency of these errors prevents the essay from reaching a higher band. Focus on proofreading for basic grammatical accuracy and subject-verb agreement.

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

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