Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-10-01

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)

There are several reasons why digital payment method has become increasingly common. While people prefer to pay by cash during shopping instead of using debit/credit cards or mobile wallets. Some people believe that, this phenomena will get swapped and every transcaction will be done using bank applications or digital platforms such as Google pay, Apple pay and Samsung pay. In my opinion, digitalisation of cash transactions will be the future of development country, although some people might not be excited to use those medians.

There are variety of reasons behind giving up using cash. The most important one is safety and security. It is unsafe to carry a big amount of money for banks, as it will require special security and protection. For example, to enable cash to customers, banks order money from other institutes, this will require a well-equipped security guards which will be an additional cost for the bank. However, if the transactions are happening all online via account transfer, that will be secure and protected and will reduce cost. Another reason is saving time and efforts. cash payments increase the workload for shopkeepers to manage the money, store them into the safe, deposit to bank and manage all account activities, while on the other side people pay by using scan codes and money directly credits into a bank account, which is the most convenient and secure way.

In my view, this will be an amazing turnover in any country's economy. However, many people would not like to stop using cash. First and foremost, Old age people who are scared and unaware of using technology will not appreciate online payment methods. At specific age they will not like to learn new methods, instead they prefer sticking to old style techniques.n

In conclusion, the future of developed country is the digitalisation and internet where everything will be done in seconds on a fingertips including shopping, browsing, banking but not limeted to. Although, there will be always some people who would like to stay outdated and utlise traditional ways to pay.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

The response addresses all parts of the prompt, discussing both whether a cashless society will happen and why some people might be unhappy about giving up cash. The position is generally clear throughout the writing. However, some ideas are under-developed or lack full clarity. For instance, the discussion on bank security costs in the second paragraph is a bit convoluted and tangential to the core prompt about consumer habits. Similarly, the explanation regarding elderly people in the third paragraph is relevant and addresses the second part of the prompt, but it could be extended with more specific examples or deeper elaboration. To reach a higher level, the ideas need to be more fully explored and directly connected to the central theme without drifting into side topics like bank operational costs.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The essay presents a coherent overall arrangement with a clear attempt to structure the response into logical paragraphs, including an introduction, body paragraphs addressing the prompts, and a conclusion. However, cohesion is sometimes faulty or mechanical. For example, transitional phrases like 'on the other side' and 'at specific age' are used awkwardly, and referencing is not always clear, as seen in the sentence fragments and abrupt transitions between ideas. Paragraphing is present, but the internal flow within paragraphs occasionally breaks down due to abrupt shifts in focus, such as moving from consumer convenience directly to bank cash management. To improve, you should ensure that cohesive devices connect ideas smoothly and that referencing is precise throughout the text.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The response demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully attempting less common vocabulary such as 'digitalisation', 'phenomena', and 'convenient'. However, there are noticeable word-choice errors, collocations, and spelling mistakes that occasionally impede communication or appear unnatural, such as 'payment method has', 'transcaction', 'medians' instead of mediums, 'Old age people', and 'limeted to'. There are also issues with word forms, such as 'development country' instead of developing country. These lexical slips and inaccuracies show an adequate control of vocabulary for this level, but achieving a higher band requires greater precision in word choice, correct spelling, and more natural collocations when attempting sophisticated terminology.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The writer uses a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating an attempt at varied structures such as conditional and relative clauses. However, there are some errors in grammar and punctuation throughout the text. These include issues with articles ('the future of developed country'), subject-verb agreement ('cash payments increase... store them... deposit... and manage', 'money directly credits'), prepositions, and punctuation, such as stray letters and incorrect comma splices. While these errors rarely impede overall communication, they occur regularly enough to restrict the score. To achieve a higher band, the writer needs to produce a greater proportion of error-free sentences when using complex structures and maintain better control over basic grammatical agreements and article usage.

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