Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-09-26

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 5.5)

Shaping children personalities and making sure that they grew up to be nice adults is such a huge responsibility on parents. By birth, every kid is nice and kind. It is the environment that shapes their traits. Scientifically, it is also proven that epigenetics i.e environment plays a huge role in traits development.

Some people believe that letting children do whatever they want and them having their own choices even in trivial matters results in them being selfish. That is kind of true because these type of children never learns that in real world they can't get everything by just throwing a tantrum. They never learn to let go. They never learn to think from other's perspective.

But, letting them choose is also important because that's what shapes them and makes them confident. They learn to love themselves and not to be entirely selfless. They learn independence. They learn how to make decisions which is very important especially in practical life. Even if the took a wrong decision, they will still learn to handle the consequences of their actions.

One of my relative's kid is a spoiled brat. It's because he throws a tantrum regardless of where he is and then the parents fulfill his demands just to get out of that embarassing situation and never corrects him. On the other hand, one of my cousin is such a kind hearted toddler. That's because although her parents love her deeply but are not afraid to correct her every time she does a mistake.

So, my final verdict is each thing you let them do has its own benefits and shortcomings. It's just that you have to let them do one activity for the benefits and then counter its limitations by another activity.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

The response addresses all parts of the prompt, discussing both views regarding children's choices and providing a clear personal opinion. The ideas are relevant and supported by personal experience, such as the references to relatives and cousins. However, some arguments tend to over-generalize, such as stating that children allowed to make choices never learn to let go, which places this response comfortably in Band 6. The position is discernible throughout, though the development of ideas lacks the depth and extension required for a higher band. Overall, the task is adequately handled with clear coverage of the core prompt requirements.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The essay displays a coherent overall arrangement with a recognizable introduction, body paragraphs addressing different viewpoints, and a conclusion. Paragraphing is utilized, though some paragraphs are relatively short and informal in tone. Cohesive devices are employed, such as 'Some people believe', 'But', and 'On the other hand', but referencing and transitions can be a bit mechanical or repetitive. For instance, the repetitive use of 'They never learn' in the second paragraph reduces the flow. Logical organization is present, but progression is occasionally disjointed, warranting a Band 6 score.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully attempting less common items like 'epigenetics', 'trivial matters', and 'spoiled brat'. However, there are noticeable word choice and collocation inaccuracies, such as 'Shaping children personalities' (instead of 'children's'), 'traits development' (instead of 'trait development'), and 'does a mistake' (instead of 'makes a mistake'). Spelling is generally correct, but informal phrases like 'spoiled brat' and conversational transitions lower the formal academic tone appropriate for Task 2. Communication is never impeded, fitting the Band 6 descriptor well.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The essay demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, including conditional and relative clauses. There are, however, several grammatical errors throughout the text, such as subject-verb agreement issues ('this type of children never learns', 'Even if the took a wrong decision') and missing pluralizations. Punctuation is mostly functional, and while these errors persist, they rarely impede communication, allowing the reader to follow the argument without significant difficulty. This balanced mixture of correct complex structures and frequent minor errors reflects a Band 6 performance.

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