Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-08-22

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

The working week should be shorter and workers should have a longer weekend.

Do you agree or disagree?

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

Student answer (Band 5.5)

In this contemporary era, employment has become an essential key to secure financial problems. Some people notion that the working week should be shorter than weekend. I disagree with this viewpoint. My stance is discuss further with relevant examples.

To commence with, the main reason of working week should not be shorter because people may lose their interest and become lazy. To elaborate on this, weekend gives individuals to spend quality time for themselves, which they can used to manage their fatigue. In contrast, excessive rest can invite laziness and people may not pay enough attention to their work, when they return back from long weekend. For example, people who study about a project, since a week, and after long holiday they face many obstacles regarding to collect data. As a result, company can take strict action again those people, and in some cases, individuals may lose their jobs.

Furthermore, shorter working hours can also have an impact on the national economy. To explain this, employees may take longer than expected to complete a simple project. Therefore, overall productivity may decrease, which can negatively affect a country's economic growth. In addition, companies may need to hire more employees to maintain the same level of output, increasing their labour costs. This could eventually reduce business efficiency and limit economic growth.

To recapitulate, I disagree with the working week should be shorter because it may be negatively affect people daily habits as well as companies' growth, particularly on the national economy. However, individuals need to understand their responsibities and work according to them.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses the prompt and maintains a clear position throughout. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited. For instance, the argument that a shorter week leads to 'laziness' is a generalization that lacks depth or nuance. The example provided regarding project data collection is slightly unclear and does not fully support the claim about the negative impact of a shorter week. To reach a higher band, you should provide more concrete, logical explanations for your points and ensure that your examples directly illustrate the argument being made rather than relying on hypothetical scenarios that are difficult to follow.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, and there is a clear introduction and conclusion. You use some cohesive devices such as 'To commence with', 'Furthermore', and 'To recapitulate'. However, the use of these devices is sometimes mechanical or slightly unnatural, such as 'My stance is discuss further'. Additionally, the flow between sentences is occasionally hindered by awkward phrasing, which makes the progression of ideas feel a bit disjointed at times. Improving the variety of linking words and ensuring that referencing (e.g., 'those people') is precise will help improve the overall coherence of your writing.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, but it lacks the precision and range required for a higher band. There are several instances of awkward word choice and collocation errors, such as 'secure financial problems' (which is contradictory) and 'people notion that' (instead of 'people hold the notion that'). You rely on fairly basic vocabulary throughout the essay. To improve, focus on using more sophisticated collocations and academic vocabulary. For example, instead of 'take strict action', you could use 'impose disciplinary measures'. Expanding your range of synonyms and ensuring words are used in their correct context is essential.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The essay contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors that occasionally impede clarity. Examples include 'weekend gives individuals to spend' (should be 'allows individuals to spend'), 'which they can used to' (should be 'which they can use to'), and 'negatively affect people daily habits' (should be 'people's daily habits'). There are also issues with preposition usage and verb forms. While the meaning is generally understandable, the frequency of these errors prevents the essay from reaching a higher band. Focusing on subject-verb agreement and the correct use of infinitives will significantly improve your accuracy.

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

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