Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-08-09

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Access to clean water is a basic human right. Therefore every home should have a water supply that is provided free of charge.

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)

Clean water leads to a healthy human being. Cleanliness is the most important part of our lives, as a way of living a healthy lifestyle. It is a basic necessity of every human being, which should be free of cost, but everyone has a different point of view on this situation, when it comes to charging a sum of money for supplying it or just providing it free of cost.

As far as i know, people do have made it a source of earning but some people cannot even afford the basic needs of their life such as water which is clean. These days people just exploit other people and nobody stands up for these issues. Like i have seen this in my society where i live, in which people from lower class to high class people live, but poor people suffer more because they are charged with a big amount for clean water supply besides the tax. The high class people do not mostly care for this issue neither support or stand up in this matter for the lower class.

In my opinion, every person in this world has a full right to his/her basic needs and it should be free of cost but, if people think that it takes in a alot of effort, then it should not be costly, rather a less amount should be charged for it , so even a poorly person can afford it.

So, in conclusion, some steps should be taken to eradicate this problem and spread awareness on this matter, so that everyone gets their rights and support by standing by them or helping them to fulfill their needs.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses the prompt by taking a position, but the development of ideas is limited. While you argue that water should be free, the supporting arguments are somewhat repetitive and lack depth. For instance, the mention of 'people from lower class to high class' is a good start, but it is not fully explored to explain the economic or social implications of free water. To reach a higher band, you should provide more specific, well-reasoned arguments—such as the impact on public health or the potential for government subsidies—rather than relying on general statements about exploitation. The conclusion is a bit vague and does not effectively summarize your main points.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organized into paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the structure. However, the use of cohesive devices is quite basic and sometimes repetitive. Phrases like 'As far as i know' and 'So, in conclusion' are used to signal transitions, but the logical flow between sentences within paragraphs is occasionally disjointed. For example, the transition from discussing the cost of water to the behavior of 'high class people' feels abrupt. Improving the variety of linking words and ensuring that each sentence builds logically upon the previous one would significantly improve the coherence of your writing.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

Your vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, but it lacks the precision and range required for higher bands. You use simple terms like 'big amount' and 'poorly person' (which is grammatically incorrect), which limits the sophistication of your argument. There is some repetition of basic words such as 'people' and 'clean water'. To improve, try to incorporate more academic collocations and precise terminology related to the topic, such as 'socio-economic disparity', 'subsidized utilities', or 'fundamental entitlement'. Expanding your vocabulary will help you express your ideas with greater clarity and impact.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The essay contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors that occasionally impede the flow of reading. Common issues include incorrect article usage (e.g., 'a alot'), subject-verb agreement, and word form errors (e.g., 'poorly person' instead of 'poor person'). Additionally, there are punctuation and capitalization errors, such as the lowercase 'i' used throughout the text. While the meaning is generally clear, these persistent errors prevent the essay from reaching a higher band. Focusing on proofreading for basic grammatical accuracy and sentence structure would be very beneficial.

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

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