Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-08-05

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Some consumers are increasingly choosing to buy goods that are produced in their local area, rather than imported goods.

What are the reasons for this?

Is this 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)

These days, people have different choices when buying various products. Some individuals prefer to buy products produced in their local region rather than those from other countries or areas. In this essay, I will discuss some causes and a negative trend for this in the upcoming paragraphs.

On the one hand, there are some reasons why people choose their own local goods. First and foremost, having too much trust. People think that when they buy goods from their local area, it is pure, real, and original products. Secondly, the price is reasonable. People can easily afford those products that are prepared in their area. For example, in my country, middle-class people purchase things that are made locally because they can buy them easily without having no stress. Hence, people like to buy things from

On the other hand, it has a negative trend when people do not choose imported goods. The primary impact is on the economy. When humans do not buy imported goods, how does the economy benefit? It might be lost to the companies. In addition, how does the business run? When people have no interest in purchasing things from other countries. Hence, these resaons become negative impact on imported goods.

In conclusion, increasing trend in people buying products that are produced in their local area because of enough trust as well as the lowest price, while it harms businesses and companies because they may be in loose. Eventually, the big impact on the economy when people buy products locally.

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response5.5
Coherence and Cohesion5.5
Lexical Resource5.5
Grammatical Range and Accuracy5.0
Overall5.5

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The essay addresses both parts of the prompt, identifying reasons for buying local and discussing the impact. However, the development of ideas is limited. The reasons provided, such as 'trust' and 'price', are mentioned but not fully explained or supported with sufficient detail. The discussion on the negative trend is somewhat repetitive and lacks clarity regarding the economic arguments. The conclusion is also quite brief and does not fully synthesize the points made. To improve, you should aim to expand on your arguments with more specific examples and ensure that the link between local consumption and economic consequences is logically explained rather than just stated.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organized into paragraphs, but the logical progression is weak. While cohesive devices like 'On the one hand' and 'In addition' are used, they are sometimes applied mechanically or in a way that does not effectively connect the ideas. The final sentence of the second paragraph is incomplete ('Hence, people like to buy things from'), which disrupts the flow. Furthermore, the transition between the reasons for buying local and the negative impacts is abrupt. Improving the use of linking words and ensuring that each paragraph has a clear, unified focus would significantly enhance the coherence of your writing.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task but lacks the range and precision required for a higher band. You rely on basic terms like 'things', 'goods', and 'products' repeatedly. There are also some awkward collocations and word choices, such as 'they may be in loose' instead of 'they may suffer losses'. While the meaning is generally clear, the lack of variety and occasional inaccuracies in word choice limit the score. To improve, try to incorporate more topic-specific vocabulary related to economics and consumer behavior, and focus on using words in their correct grammatical context.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The essay contains a mix of simple and some attempted complex structures. However, there are frequent grammatical errors, such as 'without having no stress' (a double negative) and 'these resaons become negative impact' (missing article and incorrect verb usage). Punctuation is generally functional, but the sentence structure is often repetitive. The incomplete sentence in the second paragraph also indicates a lack of control. To reach a higher band, you need to demonstrate a wider range of complex sentence structures while reducing the frequency of basic errors in subject-verb agreement and article usage.

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

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