Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-10-30

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)

Railways have always been a very popular and beneficial source of transportation among long distance cities. However, in a numerous states, it is believed that it is imperative to spend a large amount of money on fostering new railway lines for better facilities among diverse cities, while others argue that the same amount of money should be spend to ameliorate the existing public transport. in my opinion, there is a crutial need to enhance the existing railway system.

This essay will elaborate both point of views and i will also explain my opinion by giving example at the end.

On the one hand, there is a general populace believing that new railway line should be constructed for the large cities. This is because they assume that old railway lines can not be improved or re-established. They might have no idea about the budget required to complete such projects. For example, on a public demand, authorities construct new railway lines among the cities that have no trading benefits. In this case money will get waste. Moreover, it is more time-taking.

On the other hand, some people contend that there is no need for an extra project as we can amilorate the existing railway stations and railway lines. In my opinion, this will be more fruitfull for everyone. There are several reasons that support my oinion. For example, if we reconstruct the old railway lines it will take less time and will be completed in a friendly budget. Additionaly, the state will spend that remaining budget on some other usefull public projects.

To sumup, I would suggest to make some policies to keep check-in for the wellness of public facilities. They should be taken into account if there is a need.

AI examiner evaluation

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

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

You present a relevant opinion—that improving the existing railway system is preferable—and give reasons such as lower cost and the possibility of funding other public projects. You also attempt to discuss both positions. However, the first view is not fully represented: the task concerns very fast trains connecting cities, while your discussion focuses on building lines for large cities and assumes these may lack trading benefits. This does not explain why supporters value high-speed connections. Your argument for upgrading existing transport is clearer, but claims about saving time and money need specific explanation or an example. The conclusion about making policies to monitor public facilities is vague and does not clearly restate your position. Develop both views more directly and support them with relevant detail.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a recognisable overall structure: an introduction, separate paragraphs beginning “On the one hand” and “On the other hand,” and a conclusion. These signposts help readers follow the two sides, and examples are placed within the relevant paragraphs. However, progression within the argument is sometimes mechanical or unclear. The sentence “This essay will elaborate both point of views” announces the structure rather than advancing the discussion, while “In this case money will get waste” does not clearly connect the example to the claim about new railway lines. The final reference to policies and “check-in” is difficult to link to the preceding argument. Use clearer links between claims and explanations, and make the conclusion directly summarise your comparison and opinion.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You attempt a range of topic-related and formal vocabulary, including “constructing,” “ameliorate,” “re-established,” and “public projects.” This shows an effort to express ideas beyond basic language. However, several choices are inaccurate or unnatural and sometimes make the meaning harder to follow: “among long distance cities,” “fostering new railway lines,” and “money will get waste” are not suitable collocations. There are also noticeable spelling errors, such as “crutial,” “fruitfull,” “Additionaly,” and “opinion” misspelled as “opinion” in one instance? (The text has “oinion.”) Prefer precise, familiar expressions over ambitious words used incorrectly, and proofread spelling. More accurate transport-related terms would help make your comparisons clearer.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You use both simple sentences and some attempts at complex structures, for example “This is because they assume that old railway lines can not be improved” and “if we reconstruct the old railway lines it will take less time.” However, control is inconsistent, and errors occur in basic sentence construction as well as longer sentences. Examples include “the same amount of money should be spend” (incorrect verb form), “This essay will elaborate both point of views” (number and article problems), and the lowercase “in” and “i” at sentence beginnings. The conditional sentence also needs a comma after its opening clause. These errors do not make the whole response unintelligible, but they can interrupt reading. Practise accurate verb forms, articles, plurals, and sentence punctuation before adding more complex structures.

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