Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-09-12
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)
It is often argued that working week should be reduced so that employees can enjoy a long weekend. I agree with the statement because a shorter working week can improve workers' well-being and increase their productivity.
One of the reasons I agree that a working week should be shorter than usual because this strategy helps to have better mental and physical health. Workers can spend more time with their families and friends, which helps them to reduce stress and exhaustion and improve their overall well-being. For example, Chinese firm asks their workers to work remotely for one day in a week. So this helps for the good mental health of their employees.
Moreover, shorter working week and extended weekend for corporate workers boost their productivity. This can embolden them, and well-rested employees are more focused towards their work. They use their competencies in the right direction, and few errors are made. Therefore, it helps workers to use their working hours more efficiently. For instance, employees at Google work only three to four days in a week, and they are having the highest productivity rate all around the globe because they are more focused towards employees mental health rather than, just taking advantage from employees.
In conclusion, I believe that extended weekends and shortened working week is more beneficial for overall well-being of employees and higher productivity rate.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The response clearly presents a position in agreement with the prompt and supports it with relevant ideas concerning mental health, physical well-being, and productivity. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited and relies on unverified assertions, such as the claim that Google employees work only three to four days a week. Furthermore, the length requirement has not been met, as the essay contains 227 words, falling short of the 250-word minimum. This under-length impacts the overall fullness of task completion and limits the scope of idea development, leading to a Band 5.5 score under the criteria.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The essay displays a generally coherent overall arrangement with a clear introduction and conclusion. Paragraphing is utilised to separate distinct arguments regarding health and productivity. However, the progression of ideas is occasionally hindered by mechanical or repetitive cohesive devices. For instance, the transition 'One of the reasons I agree that a working week should be shorter than usual because this strategy helps...' contains a grammatical slip in linking, and referencing within paragraphs is sometimes overly simplistic. Overall, the logic is discernible, fitting the Band 6 descriptor well.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary suitable for the task, successfully using terms such as 'well-being,' 'exhaustion,' 'competencies,' and 'productivity.' There are, however, some inaccuracies in word choice and collocation, such as 'asks their workers to work remotely' and 'focused towards' instead of 'focused on.' Additionally, missing articles ('Chinese firm asks') and occasional awkward phrasing restrict the score. The vocabulary is sufficient to communicate meaning clearly, but lacks the flexibility and precision required for higher bands, justifying a Band 6.0.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The text features a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating some control over multi-clause structures such as 'One of the reasons I agree that... because this strategy helps to have...'. There are, nevertheless, frequent grammatical errors, including missing articles ('working week should be reduced,' 'Chinese firm asks'), incorrect prepositions ('focused towards'), and minor structural awkwardness ('they are having the highest productivity rate'). While these errors do not severely impede communication, their frequency prevents the essay from achieving a higher band, placing it firmly at Band 5.5.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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