Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Barron's Writing · 2026-10-24

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Some people believe that children learn better when they are placed in classes with children of similar academic abilities. Others believe that children learn better when they are in classes with children representing a diverse range of academic abilities.

Discuss both these views and give your opinion

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

Student answer (Band 5.0)

People often have a contradicting opinion when it comes down to learning better when they are placed in classes with children of similar academic abilities and when they are in classes with children representing a diverse range of academic abilities.

Overlooking at the status of children placed in classes with similar academic abilities, it helps teachers to follow a certain teaching pace overall. It also helps student to communicate with each other and clear their doubts when they are situated together with same learning abilites.

That's why often children with disabilities have separate learning environment to help them cope up better.

On the other hand, having a diverse environment of children with different learning abilities help in building a good relationship amongst students. They can teach each other. For example, I was not a studious child but my peers helped me in reaching their level of studiousness to score well in my exams. This comes from a place when children of diverse academic abilities were put together in the same class, rather than dividing them according to their grades.

Eventho the opinions flucuate person to person, Ideally it is better to not have separate classes for children with different academic abilities because, it causes a drift between the children and leads to low self esteem. Mixing them up would help in building a better environment where they can help each other. So, I conclude by saying that children learn way better when they are placed in classes with diverse rage of learning abilities.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

You discuss both positions and give a clear preference for mixed-ability classes, supported by your personal example of peers helping you improve. However, the discussion is brief and the reasons are only partly developed: the point that similar-ability grouping lets teachers maintain a suitable pace is not explained further, and the claim that separation causes low self-esteem needs support. The reference to children with disabilities also shifts the focus from academic ability to disability without clarifying the connection. The response contains 218 words, so it is 32 words below the 250-word minimum; the 35 words copied from the task prompt are not counted. Develop each view with a fuller explanation and a relevant example.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, a paragraph for each view, and a conclusion that restates your opinion. Transitions such as “On the other hand” and “So, I conclude” help signal the direction of the argument. However, progression within paragraphs is limited, and some links between ideas are unclear. For example, the move from similar-ability classes to children with disabilities does not explain how the two points relate. The conclusion repeats the preference for mixed classes rather than drawing together the reasons already given. Build each body paragraph around one main claim, then explain and illustrate it; use references such as “this arrangement” only when their meaning is clear.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use some relevant vocabulary for the topic, including “academic abilities,” “teaching pace,” “self esteem,” and “diverse environment,” and your meaning is generally understandable. However, the range is limited and several word choices or collocations are inaccurate or awkward, which makes the writing less natural. Examples include “contradicting opinion,” “Overlooking at the status,” and “cope up better”; “flucuate” and “abilites” also show spelling errors. Aim to use precise, natural phrases rather than relying on repeated forms of “children,” “help,” and “better.” Proofreading for spelling and checking common collocations will make your argument clearer and more fluent.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentence forms, including a reason clause with “because” and a relative clause in “children with different learning abilities.” However, errors occur frequently, and some sentences are difficult to follow. For example, “having a diverse environment … help” has a subject–verb agreement error, while “it helps student” needs a plural noun or an article. The sentence beginning “Ideally it is better…” is also awkwardly joined to the explanation after “because,” and punctuation around this clause needs attention. Practise checking agreement, articles, and sentence boundaries, then read each sentence aloud to see whether its grammatical structure is complete.

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