Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-09-06

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

You would like to reduce your working hours in order to study part time.

Write a letter to your boss. In your letter

• explain why you want to reduce your working hours
• say which hours you would like to work
• describe how your part-time studies would benefit your employer

You do NOT need to write any addresses.

Begin your letter as follows:

Dear ....................................,

Student answer (Band 5.5)

Respected sir,

I hope you are doing well . I am writing this letter to request you about the decrease my working hour in weekdays. because, i want to enroll German language offline classes to improve my skills .

the reason i am writing is that , my tutor told me that if you want to enroll this classes then you have to will come physically in classroom afterwards they will start my coaching .furthermore, it require full attendance as well as, they start classes on after noon 2 pm to 7 pm on Monday to Wednesday .

i would be grateful if you could grant me permission for half days for 1 month . this matter is important for me because, it not only improve my skills but also give better opportunity to our companies growth as well such as, we can make any deal with German company without any language barrier and indirectly it help us to grow our production .

I look forward to hearing from you soon .

yours faithfully

mahima

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The letter addresses all three bullet points: the reason for the request, the specific hours needed, and the benefits to the employer. However, the development of these ideas is somewhat limited. While you mention the benefit of learning German, the explanation is slightly repetitive and lacks professional polish. The tone is generally appropriate for a formal letter, although the opening 'Respected sir' is slightly unconventional for a standard business context in many English-speaking countries; 'Dear [Name]' or 'Dear Manager' would be more standard. The response covers the requirements, but the depth of the argument could be improved to reach a higher band.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The letter is organized into logical sections, moving from the request to the justification and then the benefits. However, the use of cohesive devices is sometimes mechanical or inaccurate. For example, 'the reason i am writing is that , my tutor told me...' is a bit clunky, and the punctuation around connectors like 'furthermore' and 'as well as' is inconsistent. Paragraphing is present, but the flow between sentences could be smoother. The use of referencing is generally clear, but the overall structure feels a bit disjointed due to the frequent grammatical errors that interrupt the reader's flow.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is adequate for the task but lacks variety and precision. You rely on basic phrasing such as 'improve my skills' and 'make any deal'. There are some errors in word choice, such as 'decrease my working hour' (should be 'reduce my working hours') and 'after noon 2 pm' (should be 'in the afternoon from 2 pm'). While the meaning is clear, the range of vocabulary is limited, and there are noticeable errors in collocation and phrasing that prevent a higher score. To improve, try to incorporate more professional business terminology.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

There is a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but the accuracy is inconsistent. You have frequent errors in basic grammar, such as subject-verb agreement ('it not only improve' should be 'it not only improves'), article usage, and capitalization ('i' should be 'I'). Additionally, there are issues with sentence construction, such as 'if you want to enroll this classes then you have to will come'. These errors are frequent and occasionally require the reader to re-read to understand the intended meaning. Focusing on basic sentence structure and proofreading for small errors would significantly improve your score.

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

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