Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-08-18

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Write about the following topic: Some people believe that it is good to share as much information as possible in scientific research, business and the academic world. Others believe that some information is too important or too valuable to be shared freely. 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)

In recent years it has been increasingly common to debate that whether sharing information is a good idea or bad idea. Some people believe that it is good to give knowledge as possible as in scientific research, business and the educational world, While others argue that some information hold the importance and value which cannot be shared freely. This essay will discuss both views and explain why i equally believe in both statement that sharing information is positive thinking, however sharing too much information might affect individuals future.

On the one hand, supporters of the first view believe that sharing information on scientific research or share academic data help people learn from it and it is good way to improve the ideas and innovate some useful things . This means that if one person have some good knowledge on a particular subject as science, business or any academic and they share it with other people to discover something meaningful faster, additionally it is good for a people who find difficult to learn about specific topic in business or in academic, maybe your information helps them to understand it easily. For example, In many big countries big research communities share their research ideas share with each others and make some innovation which is helpful to the country development , also business owners or students share their basic ideas to others to help them to grow.

On the other hand, many people argue that some information should be confidential to maintain privacy in business and scientific research. The main reason is that some successful business have lots of competitors in the market and there is a chance they can copy business ideas, which cause of loose profit in the business, and some research information are private because of an expensive equipment's and other things use in it, therefore company need protection and if companies shared it freely may be financial loss occurs. For instance, America is a country where many businessman own the business and many research centre there available who can not release there information to others because of safety reasons.

In conclusion although both views have there own merit, I equally believe that sharing information is good for discoveries and help people to grow , whereas some information should be private to maintain financial and identity security of the business and research centre.

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response5.5
Coherence and Cohesion6.0
Lexical Resource5.5
Grammatical Range and Accuracy5.5
Overall5.5

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 repetitive and lacks depth. For example, the argument regarding business competition is mentioned, but the explanation remains superficial. The introduction is slightly confusing, as the phrasing 'i equally believe in both statement' is contradictory to the prompt's requirement to discuss both views and provide an opinion. To reach a higher band, you should aim to provide more specific, nuanced examples rather than general statements about 'big countries' or 'many businessmen'.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay is logically organized into paragraphs, and there is a clear progression of ideas. You use basic cohesive devices such as 'On the one hand', 'On the other hand', and 'In conclusion' to signal the structure. However, the flow within paragraphs is sometimes hindered by awkward phrasing and repetitive sentence structures. For instance, the transition 'This means that if one person have some good knowledge' is slightly mechanical. Improving the variety of linking words and ensuring that referencing is precise would enhance the overall coherence.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, but it lacks the precision and range required for higher bands. You rely on simple, repetitive words like 'good', 'big', and 'things'. There are also some collocation errors, such as 'cause of loose profit' (should be 'result in a loss of profit') and 'expensive equipment's' (equipment is an uncountable noun). To improve, try to incorporate more academic collocations and precise terminology related to research and business ethics.

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 ('one person have', 'companies shared it'), article usage ('the academic world', 'a people'), and pluralization ('equipment's'). While these errors do not prevent the reader from understanding your meaning, they indicate a lack of control over complex structures. Focusing on proofreading for basic grammatical accuracy will significantly improve your score.

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

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