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

In many parts of the world, people rely on private cars for transportation.

In what ways does reliance on private cars affect the way we live?

Do the effects tend to be positive or negative?

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

Student answer (Band 5.5)

Individuals depends on private car for transportation in many countries of the world. In this topic, it will weigh the advantages and disadvantages of relying on using own car than public transportation.

In my opinion, I think depending on private cars for transportation has its own positive and negation effect in daily life of people. In one hand, having a private car for transportation gives benefits for an individual for instance, people can save more time and more flexible. It is easy and convenient whenever they need it or for emergency plans or for use of work. For example, some workers lives far from their work place and not all areas are easy accessible for public transportation. Also for families having children, it is beneficial and less hassle if they are going outside and have some fresh air after a long day work of parents. However, on the other hand, relying on private cars can be additional on the budget on each family or individuals, especially if they don’t know how to hold and budget their expenses that will lead to detrimental result and effect on their lives. Fully dependent on private cars can add burden to families because it needs for maintenance and repairing parts if needed.

In addition, it is still important to learn to use public transportation for each individual not only for budget friendly but for them to be aware if their private cars are not available.

Overall, in my opinion,having a private car is still useful and beneficial depends on the reason for usage. Furthermore, it is on how individual use it for positive effect on their daily life and more responsible enough.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses both parts of the prompt: the ways reliance on cars affects life and whether these effects are positive or negative. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited. While you mention flexibility and time-saving as benefits, and financial burden as a drawback, these points are not fully extended with detailed examples. The position is clear, but the argument lacks depth. To improve, ensure each main idea is supported by a more specific, illustrative example rather than general statements. The conclusion is a bit repetitive and does not fully synthesize the arguments presented in the body paragraphs.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, and there is a clear progression of ideas from advantages to disadvantages. You use some cohesive devices like 'In one hand', 'However', and 'In addition' to link ideas. However, some of these are used incorrectly or sound unnatural, such as 'In one hand' (should be 'On the one hand'). Additionally, the referencing is sometimes unclear, and the flow between sentences could be smoother. Improving the variety and accuracy of your linking words will help your ideas connect more naturally and elevate your score.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

You have an adequate range of vocabulary to discuss the topic, using terms like 'convenient', 'detrimental', 'maintenance', and 'transportation'. However, there are several instances of awkward phrasing and word choice errors, such as 'negation effect' instead of 'negative effects', 'easy accessible' instead of 'easily accessible', and 'responsible enough' which is grammatically incomplete. The vocabulary is generally functional but lacks the precision and sophistication required for higher bands. Focus on learning collocations and ensuring that words are used in their correct grammatical form.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The essay contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are frequent grammatical errors throughout, including subject-verb agreement issues ('Individuals depends', 'some workers lives'), article usage ('the advantages', 'the budget'), and awkward sentence construction ('it will weigh the advantages'). While these errors do not completely impede communication, they are persistent and noticeable. To improve, pay closer attention to basic subject-verb agreement and the correct use of articles and prepositions. Practicing complex sentence structures while ensuring they remain error-free will also help improve your score.

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

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