Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Barron's Writing · 2026-09-28

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Some people feel that the government should pay the costs of running universities so that a university education will be free for anyone who wants it.

To what extent do you agree or disagree with this opinion?

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

Student answer (Band 5.0)

It is often argued that universities must claim free education to students who is interested. I firmly disagree with the opinion of providing free education to pupils due to several compelling reasons. This essay will not only elaborate my view point but also provide relevant examples to support it.

To commence with, one of the most significant reason is that it seems to be impractical. In other words, government paying for the couses leads to the

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.0

The response is severely truncated, consisting of only 76 words, which falls far short of the 250-word minimum requirement stated in the instructions. As a result, the length requirement is officially not met. Although the student attempts to introduce a clear position disagreeing with the prompt and outlines an intention to provide examples and elaborate on the viewpoint, the incomplete nature of the text means that ideas are left almost entirely undeveloped. The first body paragraph breaks off mid-sentence ('government paying for the couses leads to the'). Consequently, the task cannot be fully addressed, placing this criterion firmly at Band 4.0 according to the descriptors for minimal task response.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

The writer successfully establishes a basic introductory paragraph with standard academic framing ('This essay will not only elaborate my view point...'). Transition markers like 'To commence with' are deployed to signal logical progression. However, because the text cuts off abruptly after only a few sentences, overall cohesion cannot be fully demonstrated. Paragraphing is attempted, but the second paragraph is incomplete. Referencing and logical flow are interrupted by the sudden termination of the text. Taking into account the limited output and mechanical breakdown in the second paragraph, the response aligns best with Band 5.0 for coherence and cohesion.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

The student demonstrates a minimally adequate and relevant range of vocabulary for the topic, incorporating terms such as 'universities', 'education', 'compelling reasons', and 'impractical'. However, there are notable lexical inaccuracies and awkward collocations, such as 'claim free education' instead of 'provide' or 'offer free education', and referencing university applicants or attendees as 'pupils' instead of 'students'. While these choices are noticeable, they do not entirely obscure meaning. Because the vocabulary range is limited and constrained by the brief length of the response, it warrants a Band 5.0.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, including introductory subordinate clauses ('As it is often argued...'). However, grammatical control is compromised by significant errors, such as subject-verb agreement ('education to students who is interested' instead of 'who are interested') and prepositional misuse ('view point' as two words). Furthermore, the sentence structure collapses completely at the end of the text due to the unfinished thought. Despite these issues, the initial sentences show some control over basic structures, supporting a Band 5.0 score for grammatical range and accuracy.

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

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