Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Recent IELTS Exams (Canada & India) · 2026-08-11

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Some people believe that old buildings, such as town halls and art galleries, should be restored, even though this can be costly. Others argue that governments should replace them with new, modern buildings.

Discuss both 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)

According to some people renovating older buildings is necessary. While others think that with developing world, modern structures are required. In my opinion replacing the old buildings with new is a better idea rather than renovating them. This essay aims to explain that developed structures are required in this modern era.

First of all, restoring ancient buildings just put unnecessary cost burden on the government and the wrong use of taxpayers money. In this modern world of social media, people are least interested in visiting old deteriorating structures like town halls or art galleries, and are more attracted towards modernised and fascinating malls and buildings.

Furthermore, the developed infrastructure enhaces tourism. Which is beneficial for countries growth and economy as well. So,its better to use the taxes vigilantly. For example, Dubai attracts the tourists from all over the world because of its modern, beautiful and fascinating buildings like burj khalifa and developed infrastructure.

No doubt, renovating and keeping historical structures are vital for any country. People have strong emotional association with such structures. Its a kind of feeling that words cant explain. But the cost it puts on the government over weighs its benefits.

In conclusion, people always have contrasting opinions. Some might think keeping old buildings are more important but others think that there is more need for revolutionised architecture. According to the essay, for developing country focusing on building new modern buildings is more important than restoring the older ones. People nowadays are more fascinated by modern architecture.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses both sides of the argument and provides a clear personal position. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited. While you mention the cost burden and tourism, the arguments could be more deeply explored with more nuanced reasoning. For instance, the discussion on 'emotional association' is brief and could have been better integrated into the overall argument. The conclusion effectively summarises your stance, but the essay would benefit from more detailed supporting examples beyond the mention of Dubai to strengthen the overall task response.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organised into logical paragraphs, and there is a clear progression of ideas. You use some cohesive devices such as 'Furthermore', 'First of all', and 'In conclusion' to link your points. However, some transitions feel a bit mechanical, and there are instances where sentence-level cohesion could be improved, such as the sentence fragment 'Which is beneficial for countries growth and economy as well.' Improving the flow between sentences would help the essay read more naturally and elevate the coherence score.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'deteriorating', 'infrastructure', and 'fascinating'. There are some minor errors in word choice and collocation, such as 'put unnecessary cost burden' (should be 'places an unnecessary financial burden') and 'countries growth' (missing apostrophe). While you attempt to use more sophisticated vocabulary, some phrasing remains slightly repetitive or simplistic. To reach a higher band, focus on using more precise collocations and ensuring that your word choices are consistently accurate and appropriate for an academic context.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. However, there are frequent grammatical errors, including missing articles ('the' government, 'the' taxpayers' money), punctuation issues (missing apostrophes in 'cant', 'its', 'countries'), and sentence fragments. For example, 'Which is beneficial for countries growth...' is a dependent clause that should be joined to the previous sentence. While these errors do not significantly impede communication, they are frequent enough to prevent a higher score. Focusing on subject-verb agreement and basic punctuation will help improve your accuracy.

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