Band 4.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 4.0 · Barron's Writing · 2026-10-15

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 4.0)

I agreed with this point that government should pay for universities..

If the government pays universities,many individuals will like to attend the university.

Some families can not afford to pay school fees for their wards in university and their wards are intelligent but when government pays they attend it free.When government give free education to university students many intelligent students will attend school and there will be more opportunities for people to study

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 3.0

You state a clear position in the opening—“I agreed with this point”—and give a relevant reason: some families cannot afford university fees, while capable students may miss out. However, the response addresses the task only minimally. It does not explain the extent of your agreement in detail, consider possible drawbacks or alternatives, or develop the example about students’ opportunities. The response is also substantially below the required 250 words, so there is not enough explanation or support for your view. To strengthen it, explain how free university education could benefit individuals and society, support each point with a specific example, and clarify whether you agree completely or with conditions.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.5

The ideas are relevant and follow a basic sequence: you state your opinion, then explain that fees prevent some students from attending, and finally connect free education with more study opportunities. This gives the reader a simple line of reasoning. However, the response is presented as one short block, and the final ideas repeat the point that more intelligent students would attend. The link between affordability and wider opportunities could be made clearer with separate paragraphs and more explicit progression. Develop one reason at a time, use a concluding sentence to summarise your position, and use linking expressions selectively rather than repeating the same idea.

Lexical Resource: Band 4.5

Your vocabulary communicates the central topic, using relevant terms such as “government,” “university,” “school fees,” and “opportunities.” The meaning is generally understandable, but the range is narrow and several expressions are repetitive or imprecise, including repeated references to “attend” and “intelligent students.” Some word combinations are not natural in this context, which limits clarity and flexibility. Aim to use more precise phrases for the costs and effects of university funding, and vary how you refer to students and access to education. For example, you could describe families as being unable to afford tuition and students as having the ability to succeed academically.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 4.5

You use mostly simple sentence patterns, and the reader can understand your main point. There is also an attempt to connect ideas in a longer sentence with “but” and “when,” showing some ability to express relationships between clauses. However, control is uneven: “I agreed” does not fit as naturally as “I agree” when stating your current opinion, and “when government give” has a subject–verb agreement error. The sentence beginning “Some families can not afford” also runs into several ideas without clear punctuation. Practise accurate present-tense forms and divide longer explanations into complete sentences. Using a wider range of controlled sentence structures would make your reasoning easier to follow.

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