Band 4.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 4.5 · Barron's Writing · 2026-10-17

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 4.5)

In today's rapidly changing world, private transportation has become a matter of considerable public interest. While some people firmly believe that individuals rely on their own cars for travelling from one destination to another. The essay will discuss the affects of private cars on the environment and its effects tend to be positive or negative because heavily depend on private cars leads to traffic congestion, carbon emission and pollution.

To begin with, one of the main reasons why people rely heavily on private cars is that public transport is often unreliable in large cities. However, if numerous individuals use their own cars, it leads to traffic congestion and produces pollution which can be harmful for youngsters and old-age person. For example, Cars produce dangerous gas while they are stuck in traffic and signals. As a result, survival rate will be decreased because of difficulty in breathing.

On the other side, it tend to have negative effect on human's lifes.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.0

The response identifies relevant effects of car dependence, especially congestion and pollution, and it gives a reason people use cars: public transport may be unreliable. However, it addresses the task only minimally. The effects on daily life are not explained in enough detail, and the view that the overall effects are negative appears only briefly in “it tend to have negative effect on human's lifes.” The example about emissions and breathing is relevant but needs clearer explanation and support. The response also does not meet the required minimum of 250 words, leaving too little space to develop both parts of the question. To improve, state a clear overall position and develop several effects with specific examples and consequences.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.0

There is a basic attempt to organise the response: an opening paragraph, a paragraph beginning “To begin with,” and a final statement of opinion. Some linking expressions, including “However,” “For example,” and “As a result,” show an effort to connect ideas. Nevertheless, the ideas are not arranged into a coherent progression. The introduction promises discussion of environmental effects and whether they are positive or negative, but the body gives only one developed effect, and the final paragraph is too brief to function as a conclusion. The contrast signalled by “On the other side” is not supported by a contrasting point. Use a clear sequence of paragraphs, with each focused on one effect, and connect each example directly to the main claim.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

The response uses some topic-related vocabulary, such as “public transport,” “traffic congestion,” “carbon emission,” and “pollution,” as well as more formal phrases like “considerable public interest.” This gives the reader a basic understanding of the subject. However, the range is limited, and several word choices or forms are inaccurate or awkward, including “affects” where the noun “effects” is needed, “dangerous gas,” and “human's lifes.” These errors sometimes make the intended meaning less clear. Build a wider set of accurate terms for transport and its consequences, and check collocations and word forms. For example, “vehicle emissions” is more precise than “dangerous gas,” while “people’s lives” is the correct phrase.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The response attempts both simple and more complex sentence forms, including a conditional structure in “if numerous individuals use their own cars” and a cause-and-effect sentence beginning “As a result.” However, the range is limited, and complex sentences are often faulty. The opening contains an incomplete sentence after “While,” and the following clause does not form a clear grammatical connection. There are also errors in agreement and articles, as in “it tend to have negative effect,” and in number agreement in “old-age person.” These problems can make the argument difficult to follow. Practise constructing complete sentences with clear subjects and verbs, and check agreement, articles, and singular/plural forms before submitting.

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