Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-08-05
IELTS Writing Task 2 question
Some people think that it’s a good idea to socialise with work colleagues during evenings and weekends. Other people think it’s important to keep working life completely separate from social life.
Discuss both these views and give your own opinion.
Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.
Student answer (Band 5.5)
Some people believe that it is beneficial to socialise with work colleagues like going for evening dinner and weekend outings. While others argue that it's important to keep work life separate from social life. This essay will examine why it is good to socialise with colleagues and the important of keeping work life separate from social life.
Firstly, it is good to hang-out with work colleagues because it encourages cooperation among work mates. This helps to create more time for bonding between workers outside work environment. Creating time for each other , having fun. For instance, some companies organize dinner or picnic for workers each year which is very good. On the other hand, some individuals prefer not to mix work life with social life to avoid gossip at work. Some colleagues use the opportunity to investigate about other workers to know more about others and discuss about them behind them. This could lead to segregation and forming pairs among workers. These can hinder peoples productivity at work and can also affect some individuals pride within the working environments.
In my own opinion, I believe that work like should completely separate social life. This helps to maintain respect among workers and also avoid gossip and disrespect among workers. As a result, people will focus more on their job.
In conclusion, work and social life are two different life that should be separated. Fun time with colleagues is good but separating work life from social life is more beneficial to everyone at work.
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 sides of the argument and provides a clear personal opinion. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited. For instance, the argument regarding 'gossip' and 'segregation' is mentioned but not fully explored with detailed examples or logical consequences. The introduction is slightly repetitive, and the essay could benefit from more depth in the supporting arguments to reach a higher band. While the task is addressed, the ideas remain at a surface level, which limits the overall impact of the response.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The essay is organized into clear paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the progression of ideas. Cohesive devices such as 'Firstly', 'On the other hand', and 'In conclusion' are used to link sentences and paragraphs. However, some transitions are mechanical, and the flow between sentences within paragraphs is occasionally disjointed. For example, the sentence 'Creating time for each other, having fun' is a fragment that disrupts the flow. Improving the use of referencing and more varied linking words would enhance the overall coherence of the text.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, allowing the writer to convey their meaning clearly. There are some attempts at using topic-specific vocabulary like 'cooperation', 'segregation', and 'productivity'. However, the range is somewhat limited, and there are instances of awkward phrasing, such as 'investigate about other workers' and 'individuals pride'. The repetition of basic words like 'work' and 'life' suggests a need for a wider range of synonyms and more precise collocations to demonstrate a higher level of lexical control.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are frequent grammatical errors, such as 'important of keeping' instead of 'importance of keeping', and 'work like should completely separate social life' instead of 'work life should be completely separated from social life'. Punctuation is also inconsistent, particularly with comma usage. While these errors do not significantly impede communication, they are frequent enough to prevent the essay from reaching a higher band. More attention to subject-verb agreement and sentence construction is needed.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.