Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Barron's Writing · 2026-08-15

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Some people say that physical education classes are an important part of a child's education. Others believe that it is more important to focus on academics during school time.

Discuss both these views, and give your opinion.

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

Student answer (Band 5.5)

It is often debated whether physical education classes should be an essential part of the younger generation education system or they concentrate fully on academics while in school. In the following paragraphs I will discuss both views and explain my perspectives.

The primary aim of going to school is acquire knowledge for the present and the future benefits. One important factor is that, is to engage the children in several activities in order to help them discover their talents. That is the reason why most schools dedicate some hours or a full day for activities. In Nigeria, most of the schools dedicate Wednesday or Friday for sports, because they want the younger learners to discover themselves.

Despite the benefit of physical education, there are strong arguments to concentrate more on academics while in school. The aim of parents sending their children to school is to go an acquire knowledge. And because of the limited time spend in school, they believe that the focus should be on academics in order to help them attain desire purpose in life.

To conclude, in my opinion, there should be an equal balance to this view. Because talents are being discovered when children participate in physical activities because they free to express and have fun with themselves. And also they need academics training to acquire knowlege to attain their goals in life .

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0

The response addresses both views and provides an opinion, but it fails to meet the minimum word count requirement of 250 words, reaching only 228 words. This under-length significantly impacts the development of ideas. While the arguments regarding talent discovery and academic focus are relevant, they are underdeveloped and lack sufficient depth or specific supporting evidence. The conclusion is brief and does not fully synthesize the arguments presented. To improve, you must expand your points with more detailed explanations and examples to ensure you meet the length requirement and provide a more comprehensive discussion.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, which helps the reader follow your train of thought. However, the use of cohesive devices is somewhat mechanical and limited. For instance, the transition between the introduction and the body paragraphs is basic. Some sentences are fragmented or lack smooth connections, such as the start of the final paragraph. To reach a higher band, you should use a wider variety of linking words and phrases (e.g., 'furthermore', 'consequently', 'in contrast') to improve the flow between sentences and paragraphs, ensuring that the progression of ideas is more sophisticated and natural.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

Your vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, but it lacks the range and precision required for higher bands. You rely on simple, repetitive phrasing such as 'acquire knowledge' and 'attain their goals'. There are also minor errors in word choice and collocation, such as 'younger generation education system' instead of 'educational system for the younger generation'. To improve, focus on incorporating more topic-specific vocabulary related to education and physical development, and try to use less common lexical items with greater accuracy to demonstrate a more flexible command of the language.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The essay contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors that occasionally impede clarity. Examples include 'is to engage the children' (unnecessary 'is'), 'limited time spend in school' (should be 'spent'), and 'they free to express' (missing verb 'are'). Punctuation is also inconsistent, particularly with sentence fragments in the conclusion. To improve, you need to focus on subject-verb agreement, correct verb forms, and ensuring that every sentence has a clear subject and predicate. Proofreading for these basic errors will significantly improve your score.

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

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