Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-08-27

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Many manufactured food and drink products contain high levels of sugar, which causes many health problems. Sugary products should be made more expensive to encourage people to consume less sugar.

Do you agree or disagree?

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

Student answer (Band 5.5)

Many manufactured food and drink products contain high levels of sugar which causes many health problems. Some people think that sugary products should be made more expensive to encourage people to consume less sugar. However, according to me increasing the price of sugary products only will not solve these kinds of problems. Via using this idea we can encourage middle or lower middle class people to consume less sugar but most the people can easily buy them even after price increasing.

I would recommend that government should make a ban on products which contain high amount of sugar and can cause severe health problems and in addition government should encourage companies to make alternative products which can easily replace the existing products and I think this will be more effective as compare to price increasing because by using this technique we can encourage more and more people to consume less sugary products which will not affect our body that much as compare to the banned existing products.

With the help of this strategy we can save millions of lives because most of the people nowadays are addicted to the sugary products but they don't think about their health and want to fulfill their needs rather then maintaining their health.

In conclusion, we can do a lots of things to encourage people to consume less sugary drinks and to save their lives because they all are running their health for the sake of their taste buds also we cannot do anything alone we need help of many big institutions and authorities to save as any as lives we can.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses the prompt by expressing a clear position against the proposed tax, suggesting alternative solutions like banning products instead. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited. While you argue that price increases would only affect lower-income groups, the explanation lacks depth or specific evidence. The suggestion to 'ban' products is a strong idea, but it is not fully explored in terms of feasibility or potential consequences. To reach a higher band, you should provide more detailed reasoning and perhaps a concrete example of how such a policy has worked elsewhere or why it is superior to taxation.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, each with a clear focus. You use some cohesive devices such as 'However', 'In addition', and 'In conclusion' to link ideas. However, the flow between sentences is sometimes mechanical, and the use of referencing is occasionally repetitive. For instance, the phrase 'encourage people to consume less sugar' is repeated multiple times, which affects the natural progression of the text. Improving the variety of linking words and ensuring that each paragraph flows smoothly into the next would enhance the coherence of your writing.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, allowing you to convey your meaning clearly. You use some topic-specific terms like 'manufactured food', 'addicted', and 'authorities'. However, the range is somewhat limited, and there is a reliance on simple phrasing. There are also some minor inaccuracies in word choice, such as 'running their health' (likely meaning 'ruining') and 'as any as lives' (likely meaning 'as many lives as'). To improve, try to incorporate more precise academic vocabulary and collocations related to health and public policy.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

You demonstrate a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are frequent grammatical errors, such as 'most the people' (missing 'of'), 'as compare to' (should be 'compared to'), and 'rather then' (should be 'rather than'). Punctuation is also inconsistent, particularly with comma usage in long sentences. While these errors do not significantly impede communication, they occur frequently enough to prevent a higher score. Focusing on subject-verb agreement and correct prepositional phrases will help improve your accuracy.

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

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