Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Barron's Writing · 2026-10-14

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)

Now a days consumption of easily accessible food like frozen & packaged food seemingly more popular than food ready at home.Taking meal from outside very much time demanding rather than to arrange from residence wherever it might cause serious health issues.In my opinion taking meal from outside is more convenient.

Peoples are now more busy in their workplace than before whereas most of the couples work together outside home.so it is challenging to prepare meal everyday at home rather it is easier to have it from any restaurant.From my daily life experience,me and my spouse can not get enough time to cook so we grab it from outside which is reliable for us. Although preparing frozen food also flexible for us.Also saving time from kitchen gives us opportunity to spent time with our family.

However taking outside meal sometimes causes serious health issues like cancer,peptic ulcer disease which gives us more trouble rather than saving time.Although hygenic issues always a big concern for outside food while taking it on daily basis will affect our health in a long run.For an example, obesity rate rises day by day in USA due to increasing number of junk food consumption.Though it is tiring to prepare food at home but health issue should be a concern.

Dependancy on easily accessible food increasing day by day than making food inside the home.Though having serious health problems outside food become popular for their time saving property.It is now concerning issue to arrange food which is easily accessible and good for health.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You address both sides of the question and give a clear preference for convenience, supported by your experience of you and your spouse buying meals because of limited time. You also identify health risks and refer to obesity in the USA, so the response remains relevant. However, the advantages and disadvantages are only partly developed: the convenience point is repeated, while the health claims are not explained or supported in detail. The opening also focuses on meals from outside, although the task includes frozen and packaged food; these are mentioned only briefly. To strengthen the response, explain specific benefits and drawbacks of both options and develop each with a clear reason or example.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, a paragraph about convenience, one about health concerns, and a concluding summary. This helps the reader identify the main points. However, progression within paragraphs is sometimes unclear, and several linking words are used mechanically or inaccurately. For example, “Although preparing frozen food also flexible for us” does not connect clearly to the preceding idea, while “Although hygenic issues…” introduces a contrast that is difficult to follow. The conclusion largely repeats earlier points rather than bringing them together. Use clearer topic sentences, organise each paragraph around one main idea, and make the relationship between sentences explicit with accurate referencing and transitions.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use some relevant vocabulary for the topic, including “convenient,” “health issues,” “obesity rate,” and “time saving property.” These choices make your main meaning understandable. However, the range is limited and several word choices or collocations are noticeably inaccurate, such as “meal from outside,” “time demanding,” and “arrange meal from residence.” Spelling and word-form errors, including “hygenic” and “Dependancy,” also reduce precision. Aim to use more natural expressions for food choices and their effects, and check spelling carefully. Replacing repeated general phrases with precise terms such as “prepared meals,” “food hygiene,” and “save time” would make the argument clearer and more fluent.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt some longer sentences and subordinate clauses, for example, “Although preparing frozen food also flexible for us” and “Though it is tiring to prepare food at home but health issue should be a concern.” These attempts show an effort to vary sentence structure, but complex constructions are often faulty, and errors occur frequently enough to make parts of the response difficult to follow. Examples include missing verbs or articles (“frozen food also flexible”), subject–verb agreement (“Dependancy … increasing”), and sentence boundaries and punctuation (“food ready at home.Taking”). Practise building accurate simple sentences first, then add one clear subordinate clause at a time. Check agreement, articles, and punctuation when editing.

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