Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

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

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)

Is science being ignored by universities scholars? In many countries not enough schoolgoers are opting to study science at high schools. This essay shall examine what type of causes are affecting the students to not to choose science as a subject and how socities can be affected by this paradigm-shift.

From a socioeconomic background, this shift in students' mind of not studying science has numerous avenues regarding it. The most prominent reason would be the 'difficulty factor'. Provided that a subject that is challenging and difficult, it could create a negative image in the students' mind. Although, science is quite essential for future generations then also it is ignored because of interest in other subjects which are much more creative and easier. Furthermore, the next significant cause would be limited time for extra-curricular activities. To exemplify my own experince, I got admission at a reputated university but never tried to opt science as my major provided that students those who choose science never got a chance to participate in other activities which could improve their skills. To sum up, numerous negative factors exists which outweigh its potential virtues.

Beyond this immediate social concerns, a secondary consequence of this issue entails to the degradation of society. As demonstrated by the domino effect on people's thinking and society of not exploring science creates a negative downfall.

Additionally, societies that could be benefited by the facts and experiments of science, can not be enhanced in the future. For example, an excellent scholar graduated in science major created a bio-degredable bag, that directly contributed to the advancement of ethical and social grounds.

In conclusion, there are various repercussion with the ignorance of science by students such as challenging, difficultiness and limited scope for extra activites. The effects on society are quite detrimental such as degradation of people's thinking and negative decline in gdp of a country.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You address both parts of the question by identifying perceived difficulty and limited opportunities for extracurricular activities as causes, then discussing possible effects on society. The example about choosing a university major helps make one cause more personal, and the biodegradable-bag example points towards science’s contribution to society. However, the response only partially develops these ideas: the link between science study and reduced extracurricular participation is asserted rather than explained, while the social effects are vague, especially “degradation of society” and a “negative decline in gdp.” The opening also shifts the question from university study to science at high school, which weakens the focus. Develop each cause and effect with a clear explanation and a relevant, specific example, and maintain the university-level focus throughout.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable essay structure, with an introduction, separate paragraphs for causes and effects, and a conclusion. Signposting such as “Furthermore,” “For example,” and “In conclusion” helps readers identify the intended stages. However, progression within paragraphs is not consistently clear: the first body paragraph moves from difficulty to interest in other subjects and then to extracurricular activities without fully showing how these points connect. The effects paragraph is especially difficult to follow, as “the domino effect” and “negative downfall” do not specify a clear chain of consequences. Some linking phrases, including “Beyond this immediate social concerns,” are awkward or do not clearly refer back to an established point. Organise each paragraph around one main idea and use explicit cause-and-effect links.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You attempt a range of topic-related and less common vocabulary, including “socioeconomic,” “paradigm-shift,” “consequence,” and “advancement.” This shows an effort to express abstract ideas, but several choices are inaccurate or unnatural and sometimes make the meaning hard to understand. For example, “societies that could be benefited” and “negative downfall” are not natural collocations, while “difficultiness” and “reputated” are incorrect forms. Spelling errors such as “socities,” “experince,” and “bio-degredable” also reduce accuracy. Prefer precise, familiar wording when a more ambitious phrase is uncertain, and check spelling and collocations. For instance, describe science as “challenging” and society as “harmed” or “held back,” rather than using unclear expressions.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt some complex structures, including conditional clauses (“Provided that a subject…”) and a relative clause in the example about a science graduate. However, these attempts are often faulty, and errors in sentence structure, agreement, articles, and verb patterns can make the message difficult to follow. Examples include “a subject that is challenging and difficult, it could create,” which has a faulty clause structure, and “numerous negative factors exists,” where the verb does not agree with the plural subject. In “students those who choose science,” the relative construction is also incorrect. Some sentences are fragments or lack a clear main clause, particularly “As demonstrated by the domino effect…” Practise building accurate simple sentences first, then add subordinate clauses and check each sentence for a complete structure and subject–verb agreement.

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