Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-10-01

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 the working days for the employers should be reduced as this would give them an extended weekend. I largely agree with this view because I believe a shorter working week can promote personal and family time and at the same time reduce enviromental pollution.

One of the main reason is that working four days a week instead of five can enable workers to spend a lot of time with their families which is quite not possible for them to give if they work for the whole week. Furthermore, a longer weekend can give workers an opportunity to look after themselves and prioritise their overall well-being. This is because most of the employers have busy routines and hectic schedules that they do not have enough time to focus around. Additionally, they can wind up their pending tasks, if they get an extra off in the week, consequently they will workhard and feel more relaxed for the next working days. For instance, if employers work for four days, they can spend rest of their time with families and performing different activities.

Another reason is that, shorter working days can improve enviromental pollution by reducing the combustion of fuels which is mostly caused when workers commute to their workplaces. A four day working week can save employers time which they mostly spend on the roads. As a result, they can have a longer weekend and enough time to spend with their families and loved ones. For example, if workers spend two hours in commute to work, giving an off can save their time, which they can utilise for other things. Despite its advantages, it can lead to proscrastination in the employers and loses their motivation to work.

In conclusion, I firmly agree with the advantages of shorter working days which give workers a lot of extra time which they can spend with their friends and families. Similarly, reducing the enviromental pollution on the other hand. However, it can promote laziness in the employers and loses their motivation to work.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

The response addresses all parts of the task and presents a clear position throughout, stating a strong agreement with the idea of a shorter working week. Relevant ideas are introduced, such as promoting personal and family time alongside reducing environmental pollution. However, some ideas remain under-developed or briefly treated. For instance, the point regarding environmental pollution is introduced and supported by simple examples like commuting times, but it lacks deeper elaboration. Similarly, the concession regarding procrastination and loss of motivation in the conclusion is somewhat repetitive and lacks full extension. To move to a higher level, the writer needs to ensure that every main idea is fully explained and supported with robust, detailed reasoning rather than relying on brief mentions.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The essay presents a coherent overall arrangement with clear paragraphing, dividing the introduction, body paragraphs, and conclusion appropriately. However, cohesion at times feels mechanical or repetitive. Phrases like 'Another reason is that' and referencing devices lack smooth transitions in places. Additionally, referencing is occasionally unclear, such as the mixed use of 'employers' and 'workers' interchangeably, which creates confusion regarding who is working fewer days and who is employing them. Progression is evident, but the lack of flexible cohesive devices holds the response back. Improving the logical flow between sentences and refining referencing pronouns would enhance the overall cohesion of the writing.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, attempting some less common items such as 'combustion of fuels', 'procrastination', and 'prioritise their overall well-being'. However, there are noticeable lexical inaccuracies and word choice issues. A primary example is the persistent confusion between 'employers' and 'workers', where the student refers to staff as 'employers' multiple times (e.g., 'most of the employers have busy routines'). Other minor errors include spelling issues like 'enviromental' and 'workhard', as well as awkward phrasing such as 'loses their motivation'. These errors do not seriously impede communication, but they reflect a lack of precision that prevents the vocabulary score from reaching a higher band.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The essay displays a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating attempts at varied structures such as conditional and relative clauses. There are some grammatical errors in sentence structures, articles, and prepositions, such as 'which is quite not possible for them to give', 'focus around', and 'in commute to work'. Punctuation and verb form errors also appear, but they rarely impede communication. The presence of these recurring mistakes means the sentences are not consistently error-free when complex structures are attempted. To achieve a higher band, the writer needs to demonstrate greater control over complex sentence patterns and eliminate basic agreement and prepositional errors.

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

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