Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-09-30

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)

I believe that working week shouldn't be shorter than weekends. This is because it reduces the productivity of the work. I agree on the fact that having more rest makes you feel more energetic the next day but the thing is that if you are resting too much and working very little than this can make you lazy. That's exactly what human brain gets used to; resting more than working.

Weekends are a necessary. Workers can get physical rest or can go for a little trip with family or even alone which is good for their mental health. After a little break, a person feels much more relaxed and comfortable in dealing with workload. Workload can be tiring so the weekend is important for the wellbeing.

But on the other hand, if we make weekends longer, people would simply get lazier and lazier because the body gets used to of resting more than working. People start feeling tired very early. This will then lead to less productivity. As a result it affects the development of the country because if people are not working they won't be able to pay taxes that are used for the multiplier effect; the taxes people pay, the giver uses it to build more schools and hospitals and can invest that money in local businesses.

So, I strongly disagree with the statement because lazy workers can lead to the underdevelopment of the country. The taxes they pay, the services they provide, the innovations they come up with leads to a better future for the country.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

The response addresses the prompt by taking a clear and consistent position disagreeing with the idea of a shorter working week and longer weekends. The writer presents relevant arguments centred around work productivity, psychological effects, and macroeconomic impacts such as taxation and government investment. While the ideas are relevant, some of the supporting points are somewhat repetitive, particularly the assertions regarding laziness and reduced productivity. The position is well-maintained throughout, but the depth of development for certain arguments remains basic rather than fully extended, placing the response securely in Band 6.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The essay displays a coherent overall arrangement with a logical progression from individual psychological effects to broader economic consequences. Paragraphing is utilised to separate distinct ideas, such as the benefits of current weekends versus the drawbacks of longer ones. However, cohesion is at times faulty and mechanical. For instance, the phrase 'Weekends are a necessary' contains a grammatical slip in article usage, and transitions between sentences can feel abrupt. Referencing is occasionally unclear, such as 'the taxes people pay, the giver uses it', where 'the giver' appears to be a misuse of vocabulary intended to mean the government. Overall organisation is clear, supporting a Band 6 score.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The vocabulary used is generally adequate for the task, allowing the writer to communicate ideas about productivity, mental health, and the economy. There are several attempts to use less common vocabulary, such as 'multiplier effect' and 'innovations', demonstrating a reasonable range. However, inaccuracies in word choice and collocation are noticeable throughout the text. Examples include 'working week shouldn't be shorter than weekends', 'gets used to of resting', and 'the giver uses it' (instead of the government). These lexical errors and awkward phrasings restrict the score to Band 5.5, as they occasionally cause difficulty or require the reader to interpret the intended meaning.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, incorporating conditional structures and relative clauses. There is a frequent occurrence of grammatical errors and awkward phrasing, such as 'working week shouldn't be shorter than weekends', 'than this can make you lazy', 'What human brain gets used to', and 'gets used to of resting'. Punctuation and article usage also exhibit minor flaws. While these errors do not completely impede communication and the core message remains understandable, they occur with enough frequency to prevent the response from achieving a higher band, making Band 5.5 an appropriate evaluation.

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