Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-08-26
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)
It is often argued by the people that access to the clean water is a basic and essential that should be facilitated to every home free of cost. It is quite reasonable and basic necessity of the people in my perspective because markets and convenience stores charge a lot just for the water in the contemporary society.
Firstly, it is believed that the clean water is the basic need that every individual should have. Even in this modern age, people in the rural areas drink contaminated water which causes multiple diseases like cholera, typhoid and other stomach problems. They do not have any access to clean water due to which they suffer from several difficulties.
Secondly, people have to face hard uncongenial conditions to access the clean water. Some people may have to go to distant place to acquire clean water because they lack of trustworthy water sources. Doing the water carrying activity is exhausting for them. As a matter of fact , they lose interest in other significant activities and cannot concentrate on their work as well.
Lastly, market and convenience store seller nowadays cost massive amount of money just for the sake of water which is obviously not reliable for people. Enormous amount of average and middle class people will be affected .Still, it is not guaranteed that water from those markets would be clean or pure.
In conclusion, considering access to clean water a basic necessity , governments should take some immediate actions to facilitate people with clean water free of charge which can be proved an useful in future.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The response addresses the prompt and maintains a clear position throughout. The arguments regarding health, the physical burden of water collection, and the cost of commercial water are relevant. However, the development is somewhat limited; for instance, the argument about commercial water prices is a bit simplistic and lacks a nuanced discussion of the economic feasibility of providing free water for all. While the position is consistent, the supporting ideas could be more thoroughly explored to reach a higher band. Overall, it covers all parts of the task adequately.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0
The essay is logically organized into paragraphs, each with a clear central topic. Cohesive devices such as 'Firstly', 'Secondly', and 'In conclusion' are used to guide the reader. However, some transitions are a bit mechanical, and there are instances where the flow between sentences could be smoother. For example, the transition between the health issues in rural areas and the physical burden of carrying water is functional but could be better integrated. Referencing is generally clear, and the paragraphing is appropriate for the task.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, allowing the writer to express their ideas clearly. There are some attempts at less common vocabulary, such as 'uncongenial' and 'contemporary society', though some word choices are slightly awkward or imprecise, such as 'water carrying activity' or 'market and convenience store seller'. There are also minor errors in collocation, such as 'lack of trustworthy water sources' (should be 'lack trustworthy water sources'). The range is sufficient to communicate the message, but it lacks the precision and flexibility required for higher bands.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are frequent grammatical errors, particularly with articles ('the clean water', 'the people') and prepositions. Some sentences are slightly clunky, such as 'It is often argued by the people that access to the clean water is a basic and essential that should be facilitated'. These errors do not impede communication, but they are noticeable and occur with enough frequency to prevent a higher score. Punctuation is generally functional, though there are some spacing issues around commas.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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