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

More and more people nowadays visit well-known places to take photographs of themselves, without looking at the place.

Why do you think this is happening?

Is it a positive or a negative trend?

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

Student answer (Band 5.5)

One thing I REALLY want you to work on

Look at these two sentences from your writing:

This is because, lately I have outgrown my roles as a Customer care representative.

and

In my opinion, I now have the basic skills in Marketing based on my years of experience of being a Customer care representative in this company so it is time to formally educate myself for the growth of this company.

Your thinking is good.

The problem is that you’re trying to make the sentence carry the entire thought at once.

Instead, train yourself to think:

ONE IDEA → ONE SENTENCE.

For example:

I have worked as a customer service representative for several years.

During this time, I have developed a basic understanding of marketing.

I now want to gain a formal qualification in this field.

I believe this will allow me to contribute more to the company.

That is actually stronger IELTS writing than one giant sentence containing everything.

Your blind spot

You’re currently overestimating how much sophisticated English you need to get Band 7.

You don’t.

Your ideas, organisation and ability to answer the question are already around the 7 level. The thing standing between your current writing and a consistent Band 7 is mostly grammatical accuracy and natural phrasing.

If you can get yourself to write simple sentences accurately, then gradually add more complex structures, your score should become much more stable.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0

The response does not directly address the task question regarding the reasons behind the trend of people photographing themselves at well-known places without engaging with their surroundings. Instead, it seems to reflect on personal writing style and grammar improvement. This deviation from the prompt limits the effectiveness of the argument and demonstrates a lack of direct engagement with the topic, resulting in a Task Achievement score below Band 6.5.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0

Coherence and cohesion in this response are lacking due to the fragmented nature of the sentences and absence of a clear structure. There is an attempt to present ideas logically, but without a clear introduction, body, and conclusion, the flow is difficult to follow. Linking devices are minimal, which further compounds the confusion for the reader. This leads to a score around Band 5 for coherence and cohesion as it makes it hard to understand the connections between ideas.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The lexical resource displayed in this response showcases a basic range of vocabulary with some attempt at expressing ideas. However, many phrases lack precision and appropriateness for the task, such as "customer care representative." More context-specific vocabulary is needed to match the topic, which is about tourism and photography, rather than employment. The interference of unrelated topics limits the score to around Band 6 for lexical resource due to incorrect context use and insufficient variety.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

Grammatical range and accuracy are significant barriers to clarity in the student's writing. There are overly complex sentence structures that are incorrect or awkward, as seen in the combined thoughts in the first two sentences. The recommendation to simplify ideas into more concise sentences is valuable. Frequent grammatical mistakes lead to misunderstandings. Therefore, a score of 5.5 is appropriate due to the inconsistency and errors that affect communication.

Overall feedback

The response shows a willingness to engage with the topic but strays off-course. To improve, focus on directly answering the question about why people prioritize taking photographs over engaging with their environment, and whether this trend is positive or negative. Work on structuring your paragraphs clearly—introduction, body, and conclusion. Use simpler sentences to ensure clarity and gradually introduce more complex structures as you build confidence. Familiarize yourself with vocabulary related to photography and tourism to enhance your responses in future tasks.

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

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.