Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-09-22
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)
Various products such as food and drinks containing high levels of sugar are easily available around the world and consumption of such products are causing various health problems. I support to the statement that sugary products should be made more costly so that people would reduce the consumption. This can promote the alternative product which contains healthy and natural sugar. Also, making people aware about negative impact can reduce the level of consumption.
Firstly, if the sugary products are made more expensive than people will choose cheap alternative product containing natural sugar which can really benefit the health. This is because, increasing the price decreases the demand of the product and people will ultimately shift towards cheap and healthy option. Many fruits like grapes and sugarcanes can be used as a substitute product of refined sugar. As a result, it can save the cost of people along with benefiting their health. For example, recently Nepal increase tax on sugar, so people are purchasing it less as its price rise.
Secondly, along with increasing in the price, wearing people about negative impact of refined sugar on health will decrease the consumption of such products. Educational institutions should aware students about different problems that might impact our health by consuming such foods and drinks containing high levels of sugar. Awareness and education is the most important, because many people are suffering from diabetes in an early age. As a result, people become more health conscious and reduce the consumption. For instance, recent data from World Health Organisation (WHO) declares that there are increasing number of patients suffering from diabetes in an early age.
To conclude, various sugary products should be made costly, so that people will reduce its consumption and they start to focus on using alternative products with help benefits.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 6.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0
The response addresses all parts of the task by presenting a clear position agreeing that sugary products should be made more expensive. The writer extends ideas by suggesting alternative natural products like fruits and discussing the role of public awareness and education. While the arguments are generally relevant and supported with examples such as Nepal increasing tax on sugar and references to the World Health Organisation, some points remain slightly under-developed or general. For instance, the link between higher prices and health benefits could be explained with greater depth. Nevertheless, a clear stance is maintained throughout the essay, meeting the criteria for a Band 6.5 or 7.0.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The essay displays a clear overall progression with a recognizable introduction, two body paragraphs supporting the main arguments, and a conclusion. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate distinct points. Cohesive devices are employed to connect ideas, such as 'Firstly,' 'Secondly,' and 'To conclude.' However, some cohesion is a bit mechanical or faulty, such as referencing errors ('if the sugary products are made more expensive than people will choose...'). Furthermore, transitional flow between sentences could be smoother. These minor limitations place the response firmly in the Band 6.0 to 6.5 range.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.0
The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully attempting less common items such as 'substitute product,' 'refined sugar,' and 'health conscious.' However, there are noticeable word-choice errors and awkward collocations, such as 'I support to the statement,' 'wearing people about negative impact' (instead of warning), and 'with help benefits' (instead of health benefits). While these errors do not seriously impede communication, they demonstrate a lack of precision that prevents the writing from achieving a higher lexical score.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The essay demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, including conditional and relative clauses ('if the sugary products are made more expensive...', 'which can really benefit the health'). However, there are frequent grammatical errors, particularly with subject-verb agreement ('consumption of such products are causing') and prepositions ('suffering from diabetes in an early age' instead of at an early age). Punctuation and article usage also show occasional lapses. Despite these errors, meaning is generally clear, which aligns with the descriptor for Band 5.5 or 6.0.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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