Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-08-12
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 5.0)
Clean water is essential for life, so many people believe governments should provide it to every home for free. While I agree that water is a basic human right, making it completely free is not the best solution. On one hand, free water ensures that poor families can survive and stay healthy. No one should suffer from disease just because they cannot afford water. On the other hand, when something is free, people often waste it. Families might leave taps running or use too much water for gardening. Moreover, treating and delivering clean water costs money. Governments need water fees to repair pipes and build modern water systems. In conclusion, clean water must be affordable for everyone. However, instead of making it free, governments should charge a small fee to prevent waste and maintain the system. e e r r r r r w r w r ntw r e t t w r tw tgw r yf w 5fr e t re g 4 h s wt d s! e t e et e t de t r gk. k j h h k kh. k k j j. j. b j j j k k k k k k k k k k. k. j7j jj j j i ih i h. i o ii o jo i i o i i n ok 9 j o jj o on j on8 ojo o o 9. ono o. m k ,kmoom9ojo i. kj jjjjjhhh. h j j j j j j j j j k k oo
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0
The essay addresses the prompt by presenting a clear position on the provision of free water. The arguments regarding the necessity of water for the poor versus the risk of waste and the need for infrastructure funding are relevant and logically developed. However, the response is severely compromised by the inclusion of a large amount of incoherent, repetitive, and nonsensical text at the end. This 'noise' detracts significantly from the overall task response, as it indicates a failure to maintain focus and control over the writing task. While the initial argument is sound, the inclusion of irrelevant characters and strings prevents the essay from being considered a fully developed, professional response.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0
The essay begins with a logical structure, using clear transition signals such as 'On one hand', 'On the other hand', and 'In conclusion' to guide the reader through the argument. Paragraphing is used appropriately in the first half of the text. However, the coherence completely breaks down in the final section, where the text descends into a series of random letters and punctuation marks. This renders the latter part of the response entirely incoherent, making it impossible to follow any logical progression or maintain a cohesive flow throughout the entire piece.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.0
The vocabulary used in the coherent portion of the essay is adequate for the task, with terms like 'essential', 'affordable', 'infrastructure', and 'maintain' used correctly. The student demonstrates a sufficient range to express their opinion clearly. However, the lexical resource is severely limited by the repetitive and nonsensical strings of characters at the end of the essay. Because these strings do not constitute language, they cannot be evaluated as vocabulary, and their presence significantly lowers the overall quality and professionalism of the lexical output.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
In the initial paragraphs, the student demonstrates a good grasp of sentence structure, using a mix of simple and complex sentences with few errors. For example, 'While I agree that water is a basic human right, making it completely free is not the best solution' is a well-constructed complex sentence. However, the grammatical accuracy cannot be assessed for the final section of the essay, as it consists of random characters rather than meaningful sentences. This lack of control over the final portion of the writing task significantly impacts the overall assessment of grammatical range and accuracy.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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