Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-09-14

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)

It is widely contended that numerous food and drink items include high levels of sugar, which is dangerous for health. Increasing the prices of these sugary products will reduce the consumption of sugar; I strongly agree with this approach, and I believe more measures should be taken to control diabetes.

Many grocery items contain a high amount of sugar, which increases the risk of health problems. Many food products, such as local sweets and cakes, contain a high level of sugar. On the other hand, soft drinks, flavoured milk and ice creams contain 25-30 grams of sugar per 100ml, which ultimately risks heart health and diabetes. Many countries, including Pakistan, have been hit by diabetes, causes 30 percent of its population. These numbers are growing every year, and if not controlled in the near future, it'll be a very alarming situation.

It can be controlled by taking proper steps by the government, such as making these products more expensive and also by raising awareness among the masses. If sugary drinks will be more costly, subsequently people will avoid to purchase these items. Many countries have used this strategy to overcome excessive consumption of sugar. The governments should raise awareness through digital advertisements on social media. This will surely help in reducing sugar intake. The younger generation has a habit of drinking soft drinks, and these steps will be more than enough to overcome this issue.

To summarize this, food and drink items increase the risk of heart problems and diabetes. Raising awareness will help a lot to overcome this problem. I believe that we should also run different campaigns to avoid this issue permanently.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses all parts of the prompt, taking a clear stance on whether sugary products should be made more expensive to reduce consumption. The position is maintained throughout the essay. The student presents relevant ideas regarding health risks such as diabetes and heart disease, and supports them with examples like soft drinks and local sweets. However, some ideas are slightly repetitive or under-developed. For instance, the discussion on government intervention and awareness campaigns could be extended with more specific examples. Overall, the task is addressed adequately, fitting the criteria for Band 6.5 or a solid Band 6. The main ideas are present and relevant, but further extension and depth would be required for a higher band.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay displays a coherent overall arrangement with a logical progression of ideas across paragraphs. The introduction states the topic and the writer's position, the body paragraphs discuss health risks and proposed solutions respectively, and the conclusion summarises the main points. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate distinct ideas. However, cohesion at the sentence level is sometimes mechanical or repetitive, such as the frequent use of 'many' and 'this'. Referencing is generally clear, though transitional phrases like 'To summarize this' are somewhat simplistic. Cohesive devices are functional rather than flexible, earning this section a Band 6 score.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The student demonstrates an adequate vocabulary range for the task, successfully using terms like 'consumption', 'excessive consumption', 'diabetes', and 'digital advertisements'. There are occasional attempts at less common vocabulary, but some word choices and collocations are slightly unnatural or inaccurate, such as 'hit by diabetes, causes 30 percent of its population' and 'avoid to purchase these items' (instead of 'avoid purchasing'). Spelling and word formation are generally accurate, and errors do not impede communication. This performance aligns well with the Band 6 descriptors for lexical resource.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The writer uses a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating some control over clause structures with conditional sentences such as 'If sugary drinks will be more costly, subsequently people will avoid to purchase these items' (though note the minor tense error 'will be'). There are several grammatical errors present, including 'causes 30 percent' instead of 'causing' and 'avoid to purchase'. Punctuation is generally fine, and while errors occur, they rarely impede overall communication. The presence of these errors alongside a mix of structures places this response firmly at Band 6.

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