Band 4.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 4.0 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-09-19
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 4.0)
In my opinion both are equally significant.one on other hand both will help to boost the capital of country. Both are being used by the public.so their opinion can not be negated.The government always has funds to allocate to the different departments.In my observation railway has it's own allowance for maintenance, however the same case is with the present infrastructure already in running also need refurbishment.so Maintenance department has it's own budget and finances to maintainenc and development.
Public paid very high Texces to the government so they have right to ask and give their opinion about the public transport and it's improvements.There is saying United you stand devided you fall.
Nations can rise if they work together along with their governments.Highlight any issue Government will resolve it.
As conclusion I would say both issues should be equally tahen seriously.They both will help to bring the economy up and commen Man will also be facilitied by both
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 4.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 4.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 4.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 4.0 |
| Overall | 4.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 4.0
The response fails to meet the minimum length requirement of 250 words, coming in at only 157 words, which significantly restricts the development of ideas. While the writer attempts to discuss both views regarding fast trains versus existing public transport and briefly offers an opinion that both are significant, the arguments are extremely underdeveloped. Points are stated rather than explained or supported with relevant examples. For instance, the mention that the 'government always has funds' or that 'public paid very high Texces' touches on valid ideas, but these points are left as unsupported assertions rather than being fully elaborated to address the complexity of the prompt. As a result, the task is addressed only partially, leading to a band score of 4.0 in Task Achievement.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 4.0
The organisational structure of the essay is severely compromised by a lack of proper paragraphing and mechanical errors in sentence boundaries. The text runs together into unstructured blocks, and sentences often lack appropriate transitions, making the progression of ideas difficult to follow. For example, phrases like 'one on other hand' and 'so their opinion can not be negated' demonstrate faulty cohesive ties. Referencing is frequently unclear, and punctuation errors further disrupt the logical flow. Although there is a rudimentary attempt to introduce a topic and provide a concluding sentence, the overall arrangement lacks cohesion and logical progression, aligning with the descriptors for a band 4.0.
Lexical Resource — Band 4.0
The vocabulary used is basic, repetitive, and restricted in range. Words such as 'significant', 'government', 'money', and 'public' are repeated without effective synonyms. There are also frequent spelling and word-choice errors that strain the reader, such as 'Texces' for taxes, 'devided' for divided, 'maintainenc' for maintenance, and 'commem Man' for common man. While the writer attempts to use some topic-related terms like 'infrastructure', 'refurbishment', and 'allowance', the high frequency of lexical inaccuracies and the limited overall vocabulary resource restrict the score to a 4.0.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 4.0
The grammatical range is very limited, consisting predominantly of simple sentences and faulty attempts at complex structures. Punctuation and capitalization are frequently mishandled, such as missing spaces after periods ('significant.one', 'public.so'), incorrect capitalization in the middle of sentences ('Texces', 'Man'), and missing apostrophes or misuse of them ('it's' used incorrectly for possessives). Grammatical errors are frequent throughout the text, including subject-verb agreement issues ('present infrastructure... also need refurbishment') and awkward phrasing. These errors cause considerable strain for the reader and prevent the text from achieving a higher band, resulting in a score of 4.0.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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