Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Recent IELTS Exams (Canada & India) · 2026-08-10

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

In many countries not enough students are choosing to study science at university. What are the causes of this? What effects does it have on society?

Give reasons for your answer and include relevant examples from your knowledge or experience.

Student answer (Band 5.5)

Science was condisered as most progressive and important subject to be choosen by students in the past beacuse the previous century. It was beacuse the 20th century is considered to be century of innovations. Most of the parents in that era got inspired by it back then. But now, the social media trends and the charms towards it changed the whole situation.

The major cause of students not choosing science to study at university is the modern emerging fields of study which were not there back in time. Gender was not considered as a big issue then but now people are more interested in studying. Climate change, even as a term is not very popular in society especially in developing world. For example, before Imran Khan came into power, a very few discussions were held about climate change. Khan has urged the importance of tree plantation in the context of climate change and rising temperatures.

So the pure sciences are not anymore considered as the most intellectual topic of modern societies. This has alrady impacted our society in various ways. Especially, in third world countries, people are more focus in attaining a career shortcuts. They are more interested in learning digital currencies and social media activism to get prominence is society. This also include the notion to achieve early financial success as a Tiktoker or Instagram influencer. This lead to the shortage in medical professionals, space scientists or other purely scientific domains. For example, Pakistan has got shortage of MBBS doctors while there is high saturation in the field of mass media exists.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses both parts of the prompt: causes and effects. However, the development of ideas is somewhat uneven. The causes are linked to modern trends and social media, which is relevant, but the explanation regarding 'gender' and 'climate change' is tangential and lacks a clear connection to why students are avoiding science. The effects are better developed, specifically the mention of a shortage of medical professionals. To improve, ensure that every point directly answers the 'why' or 'what' of the prompt rather than drifting into general social commentary. The position is clear, but the supporting arguments require more logical cohesion to reach a higher band.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organized into three paragraphs, which is a logical structure. However, the flow between sentences is often mechanical or disjointed. For example, the transition from discussing the 20th century to modern social media is abrupt. Cohesive devices are used, but they are sometimes repetitive or misused, such as 'This also include the notion' and 'This lead to'. Referencing is occasionally unclear, making it difficult for the reader to follow the progression of ideas. Improving the use of linking words and ensuring that each paragraph has a clear topic sentence would significantly enhance the coherence of the essay.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task but lacks the precision and range required for a higher band. There are several instances of awkward phrasing and incorrect word choices, such as 'charms towards it', 'attaining a career shortcuts', and 'prominence is society'. Spelling errors like 'condisered', 'beacuse', and 'alrady' are frequent and distract the reader. While the student attempts to use topic-specific vocabulary like 'digital currencies' and 'scientific domains', the overall control is limited. To improve, focus on learning collocations and proofreading for common spelling mistakes.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The essay relies heavily on simple sentence structures. While there are attempts at complex sentences, they are often marred by grammatical errors, such as 'Science was condisered as most progressive... subject to be choosen' and 'Most of the parents in that era got inspired by it'. Subject-verb agreement and article usage are inconsistent, for example, 'a very few discussions' and 'Pakistan has got shortage'. Punctuation is generally functional, but the frequency of errors in basic grammar structures impedes the flow and clarity of the writing. A focus on mastering basic sentence construction and verb tenses is recommended.

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

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