Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-10-10

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)

Access to clean and safe water is a fundamental human right. It is argued that every house must have access to clean water that is provided free of charge. I completely disagree with this stance because this can give arise to problems such as unemployment and wastage of water.

Firstly, if humans were given access to clean water for free then they might become careless due to water being free and unlimited. They might utilize the water carelessly such as using water more than that is required, leaving the tap open, etc. For instance, if an individual have access of water for free, they won't consider about using it carefully since it didn't cost them their money. That's why it is essential to not make the access of water free as water is limited too.

Secondly, there are many company that provides clean water to many homes inexchange of money. There are employments working in those companies. If each home have water supply that is free of charge then the employments working on these companies may become unemployed and the company also might have to shut down causing an unemployment issue across globe. Thus, access to clean water free of cost have more drawbacks than advantages.

In conclusion, I strongly believe that while access to clean water is a basic human right, water supply free of charge to every home is not the most effective way to give that right.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

Your position is clear: you disagree with free household water, and the two body paragraphs give relevant reasons about waste and employment. However, the response does not fully develop the issue of how free provision relates to the human right to clean water; the employment argument also assumes that water companies would close, without explaining how services might instead be funded or organised. The example about leaving taps open supports your first point, but it remains general. The response is 231 words, below the 250-word minimum; nine words copied from the task prompt were not counted. Add a developed explanation or example, and consider acknowledging how your proposal would protect access for households unable to pay.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The essay has a clear overall arrangement: an introduction states your view, two paragraphs present separate reasons, and the conclusion restates your position. Sequencing phrases such as “Firstly,” “Secondly,” and “In conclusion” make the progression easy to follow. Some connections are less convincing or mechanical, however. “Thus” introduces a conclusion about drawbacks without fully showing how the preceding claim proves that free water would cause widespread unemployment. The first paragraph also repeats the idea that water is free and people may use it carelessly. Improve cohesion by linking each example explicitly to its main claim and varying transitions with clearer cause-and-effect phrasing. A more developed paragraph structure would also help the argument progress rather than simply list reasons.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use enough topic-related vocabulary to communicate your argument, including “fundamental human right,” “unemployment,” and “wastage of water.” There are also attempts at more formal phrasing, such as “provided free of charge” and “the most effective way.” However, several word choices and collocations are inaccurate or awkward, which limits precision: “give arise to problems,” “inexchange of money,” and “the employments working on these companies” are difficult to interpret naturally. Repetition of “free” and “water” also makes the range seem limited. Aim for accurate collocations and more precise terms, such as “lead to problems,” “in return for payment,” and “employees at these companies.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and complex sentence forms, including conditional structures such as “if humans were given access … they might become careless” and a concessive clause in the conclusion. Meaning is generally understandable, but errors in agreement, articles, and verb forms occur across the response. For example, “if an individual have” should be “if an individual has,” while “each home have” needs “each home has.” In “there are many company,” the plural noun is required, and “access … free of cost have” also has a subject–verb agreement problem. Some sentences are long and joined with commas, as in the example about an individual using water, so check punctuation and sentence boundaries. Proofread for agreement and practise accurate complex sentences.

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