Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Recent IELTS Exams (Canada & India) · 2026-09-12

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)

Few individuals feel that ancient monument like museums, art galleries should be preserved as it would retain the memories of the ancient emperor and it reflects the art of old ages. it also attracts tourist from all over the world to visit these places. on other side some think that higher authorities should renew with modernized structures to prevent shortage of residential areas to live. This essay will focus on both views

On one hand Old monuments like Big Mosques, museums and galleries should be preserved by restoring whenever necessary. Although these places will take a huge amount of money to be restored but it always reflect the memories of the kingdom of emperors. By visiting these places individuals will able to see how they used to live, there utensils, crockery, clothes and vehicles. Moreover it attracts tourists from all over the world to visit and study about there lifestyles. when tourist visit to these places it generates revenue to the country in the form of tickets they buy, the antiques they purchase to keep it memorable. I think that it would be very helpful to restored this monuments as it could be vacation place for the children and families. During summer children can visit old galleries and study about history.

On other hand, some think that higher authorities should replace them to modernized buildings, I am satisfied to do this because maintaining these old buildings is costly and time consuming. The material use to construct these buildings is rare and costly. Converting them to new building will be helpful due shortage of residential areas in the populated cities. Replacing the old with new ones will create lots of space to live in urban areas.

Lastly, I would say the words to preserve old monuments, even its costly will help to preserve history and attract tourists. Reconstructing them to new building will help to minimize the shortage of residential places for local population.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response addresses all parts of the prompt by discussing both views on historical buildings and providing a clear personal opinion. The writer explains that preserving old buildings helps retain history and generates tourism revenue, while also arguing that replacing them with modern structures can alleviate residential shortages. Ideas are extended with examples such as seeing old utensils, clothes, and vehicles, and mentioning ticket sales. However, some arguments remain somewhat repetitive and under-developed, and the position could be more thoroughly supported with deeper reasoning. Overall, the task is adequately fulfilled, meeting the requirements for a Band 6.0 rating.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay displays an overall coherent arrangement, with a clear introduction and conclusion framing the body paragraphs. Paragraphing is utilised to separate the two competing views. However, cohesion is frequently faulty or mechanical. The transition phrases used are basic, such as 'On one hand', 'On other hand', and 'Lastly', and there are errors in referencing and punctuation (e.g., missing capitalization at the start of sentences like 'it also attracts...'). Furthermore, the logical progression within paragraphs could be smoother, as ideas are sometimes juxtaposed rather than seamlessly connected. This corresponds to the Band 5.5 to 6.0 descriptors.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, attempting some less common items such as 'ancient monument', 'modernized structures', 'revenue', and 'antiques'. However, there are noticeable limitations and inaccuracies in word choice, form, and collocation, such as writing 'ancient monument like museums' instead of 'ancient monuments like museums', and 'restored this monuments' instead of 'restore these monuments'. Spelling and word-formation errors do not entirely impede communication, but they occur frequently enough to prevent the score from reaching a higher band. This performance sits firmly at Band 5.5.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, incorporating clauses with 'although', 'when', and 'because'. However, grammatical accuracy is weak, with frequent errors in punctuation, subject-verb agreement, and articles. Examples include missing initial capital letters ('it also attracts'), pluralisation errors ('there utensils', 'this monuments'), and missing prepositions ('replace them to modernized buildings' instead of 'replace them with'). Complex structures often contain faults, which require the reader to occasionally exert effort to understand the intended meaning. This level of control aligns with a Band 5.0.

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

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