Band 4.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 4.0 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-09-14

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Some people believe that allowing children to make their own choices on everyday matters (such as food, clothes and entertainment) is likely to result in a society of individuals who only think about their own wishes. Other people believe that it is important for children to make decisions about matters that affect them.

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)

Some people believe that children should handle their matters own like wearing clothes , eating food and way of enjoy . While other individuals believe that when children make their decisions level of confidence rise .

On the one hand some people argue that children should

be given the freedom to decide their matters that build the confidence in children . As this can help them to think seperately

Next some people believe that children should be make their dission own if they

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 3.5

The response is severely underdeveloped and incomplete, reaching only 83 words, which falls far short of the minimum requirement of 250 words for Task 2. Consequently, the task cannot be fully addressed. While the student attempts to touch upon both views regarding children making their own choices and mentions the effect on confidence, the ideas are merely stated without any extension, relevant examples, or proper development. Furthermore, the response trails off mid-sentence and fails to provide a conclusion or the writer's own opinion as explicitly requested by the prompt. In accordance with the band descriptors for under-length responses, this performance falls into the lower bands due to the minimal development of the task.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 4.0

The text displays a basic attempt at paragraphing, with an introductory sentence and a brief attempt at a body paragraph starting with 'On the one hand'. However, the overall organisation is heavily disrupted because the essay is incomplete and ends abruptly mid-sentence. Cohesive devices are extremely limited and mechanical, restricted to basic transitions like 'On the one hand' and 'Next'. Referencing is unclear in places, such as in the phrase 'their matters own', and the lack of progression prevents the text from achieving a coherent overall arrangement. Paragraphing is insufficient due to the extremely truncated nature of the writing.

Lexical Resource — Band 4.0

The vocabulary used is very basic and repetitive, frequently impeded by awkward word choice and collocation errors. Examples include 'handle their matters own', 'way of enjoy', and 'think seperately'. There are also clear lexical and spelling errors, such as 'dission' instead of 'decision'. The range of vocabulary is severely limited and inadequate for discussing abstract social topics, making it difficult for the reader to follow the intended meaning smoothly. No less common vocabulary items are used accurately.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 3.5

The grammatical range is extremely limited, consisting mostly of simple or fragmented structures that often break down entirely. The text contains frequent, major grammatical errors that impede communication, such as 'children should handle their matters own', 'when children make their decisions level of confidence rise', and 'children should be make their dission own'. Sentence forms are faulty, word order is incorrect, and articles or prepositions are frequently missing. Because the response is so short and trails off mid-sentence, it fails to demonstrate control over even basic sentence structures reliably.

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

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