Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Barron's Writing · 2026-08-06
IELTS Writing Task 2 question
A growing number of people rely on restaurants and convenience food (frozen food and packaged meals) rather than home-cooked food to supply most of their meals.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of eating this way?
Give reasons for your answer, and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.
Student answer (Band 5.5)
An increasing number of people are prioritizing frozen and packaged meals instead of home cooked food. This essay is going to explain the merits and demerits of this trend.
The main advantage of eating outside is time saving. Nowadays, individuals are work oriented and they have not time to cook food at home. After work, they are feeling exhausted so that it is easy to eat at restaurants or pick up packaged food.
Another benefit is saving money. Frozen food is more cheaper as compared to cook food at home. To prepare meals at home need to buy groceries first and spend hours to cook at gas. Eating outside helps to save money in order to reduce gas and electricity bills.
On the flip side, eating at restaurants everyday invite number of diseases. At cuisines, the food is not fresh and they may be used same oil many times for preparing different meals causes severe health problems such as diabetes, high blood pressure, and so on.
Another disadvantage to eat frozen food is lack of nutrients in the body. The food is frozen with preservatives, which kills the healthy nutrients from the food. This food is only sufficient to stop hunger of stomach, but it comes with internal health problems like gas, and so on.
In conclusion, although eating at restaurants is time and money saving, this habit is full of unhealthy lifestyle, which is not good future health. It should be balanced to keep good health.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The response addresses both the advantages and disadvantages of the trend. However, the essay falls slightly short of the 250-word minimum requirement, which negatively impacts the task achievement score. While the ideas are relevant, they are somewhat under-developed; for instance, the argument regarding cost-saving is logically flawed, as home-cooked meals are generally more economical than restaurant dining. The position is clear, but the lack of depth and the failure to meet the length requirement prevent a higher score.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0
The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, with a clear introduction, body paragraphs for advantages and disadvantages, and a conclusion. Cohesive devices are used, such as 'The main advantage', 'Another benefit', and 'On the flip side', which help the flow of ideas. However, some transitions are mechanical, and the referencing is occasionally repetitive. The progression of ideas is generally clear, but the overall structure could be improved by better linking the sentences within paragraphs to create a more cohesive argument.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The vocabulary is adequate for the task but lacks variety and precision. There are several instances of awkward phrasing, such as 'work oriented' instead of 'career-focused' or 'time-constrained', and 'At cuisines' which is an incorrect usage. The student relies on basic vocabulary and makes some errors in word choice, such as 'more cheaper' (a double comparative error). To achieve a higher band, the student should focus on using more precise collocations and a wider range of academic vocabulary.
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 the flow. Examples include 'they have not time' (incorrect negation), 'more cheaper' (double comparative), 'To prepare meals at home need to buy' (missing subject), and 'they may be used same oil' (incorrect passive voice). Punctuation is generally acceptable, but the frequency of these grammatical slips suggests a lack of control over more complex structures.
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