Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-11-06

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

In a number of countries, some people think it is necessary to spend large sums of money on constructing new railway lines for very fast trains between cities. Others believe the money should be spent on improving existing public transport.

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 the contemporary world, some people believe that it is significant to spend large amount of money for building new railway lines for fast trains. while, others opine that goverment should spent money on improving or maintaing public transports such as buses. Moreover this essay will discuss both the views and I, however, side with the latter statement.

On the one hand, many people believe that it is crucial to spend money on constructing new railway tracks because nowadays, every individual prefer to travel on trains or metros to reach their workplaces on time especially employees who work in a specific companies if they reach late everyday they may lost their job and face many problems so, that is why goverment should spend money to build fast tracks.

On the other hand, some people opine that it is more vital to spent money on improving public transport because every individual nowadays, prefer to use their private vehicle because they do not get good experience while using public transport such as buses, they do not get comfortable seats over there. Moreover, the windows and not working properly so they does not get fresh air. Furthermore, many old citizen are not able to get seats and they even struggle to sit comfortably and even it will effect their spine and cause body ache.

In conclusion, I believe that goverment should spend equal amount of money to maintain both. Moreover, it is more important to spent money to improve public transport so, people can prefer to use more public transport such as buses and it will cause less air pollution in the environment and helps to improve economy of the country.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You address both sides of the discussion and state a preference for improving existing public transport, so the response is relevant to the task. The second body paragraph gives concrete reasons—uncomfortable seats, faulty windows and difficulties for older passengers—and the conclusion links better buses with reduced pollution. However, the first view is only briefly explained: the focus on workers arriving on time does not clearly show why very fast intercity railway lines are worth the investment. Your final position also shifts from supporting the latter view to spending equally on both, leaving your opinion less consistent. Develop the benefits and drawbacks of each investment more fully, and make your own position clear and consistent throughout.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a clear overall structure: an introduction, separate paragraphs for the two views, and a conclusion. Signposts such as “On the one hand,” “On the other hand,” and “In conclusion” help readers follow the discussion. However, progression within sentences is sometimes difficult to follow because several ideas are joined into long chains, particularly the explanation about workers arriving late. Some linking words, including “Moreover” and “Furthermore,” are used mechanically, and the relationship between your stated preference and the conclusion’s proposal to spend equally is unclear. Use shorter, more controlled sentences and connect each supporting example explicitly to the paragraph’s main point.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use enough topic-related vocabulary to discuss transport, including “railway tracks,” “public transport,” “private vehicle,” and “air pollution.” There are also attempts at more formal phrasing, such as “crucial” and “vital.” However, the range is limited by repeated use of “spend money,” “individual,” and “prefer,” while several word choices or collocations are inaccurate: “fast tracks” is unclear for high-speed rail lines, and “the windows and not working properly” appears to mean that the windows are faulty. Spelling errors such as “goverment” and “maintaining” also affect accuracy. Build a more precise transport-related vocabulary and check spelling and natural word combinations.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and complex sentences, including clauses with “because” and “so,” and the main ideas are generally understandable. However, complex sentences are often poorly controlled, and errors occur frequently enough to make some passages difficult to read. Examples include “every individual prefer,” “government should spent,” “they does not get,” and “it will effect their spine”; these show problems with agreement and verb forms. Several sentences also run together without appropriate punctuation, especially the explanation about employees arriving late. Practise forming one complete idea per sentence, checking subject–verb agreement and verb forms, and using full stops or commas to separate clauses.

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