Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-11-07

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

In many countries, primary and secondary schools close for two months or more in the summer holidays.

What is the value of long school holidays?

What are the arguments in favour of shorter school holidays?

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

Student answer (Band 5.0)

School holidays play a significant role in children's education system. While some of the countries offer long summer vacations upto two months or more that can be a risk factor for students which may proceed lack of learning habbits and carelessness.

The tropical countries usually give the longer summer vacations due to the hot and dry weather. This gives direct exposure of sun c that can make a child dehydrated and effects its health. Furthermore, longer breaks may effect the course syllabus that cannot be completed on a actual timeline,

it gives stress to teachers and the curriculum is disturbed.

On the other hand, now

schools are giving shorter vacations usually upto 1 month due to the course syllablus completion. However, it can

help student to conect with their studies. For instance, a recent study has shown that those students who take longer breaks lose lack of motivation and learning habbits, while those who take short breaks have seen normal.

to put it in a nutshell, in my opinion shorter holidays have merits while longer breaks have some diadvantages in terms of student performance ability. It is advisable to give justified holidays and give them summer tasks as well ,so that it would be helpful in maintaining students positive attitude toward studies.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.5

You address both questions in a basic way: you mention possible health risks and syllabus disruption as reasons for long holidays, then argue that shorter breaks help students stay connected with their studies. However, the discussion is limited and does not fully explain the value of long holidays—for example, rest, family time, or opportunities for other activities are not considered. The case for shorter holidays is also asserted rather than developed; the reference to a “recent study” gives no details or example. Your final preference for shorter holidays is clear, but the response is 38 words below the required minimum, which restricts how fully you can explain and support your ideas. Develop each side with specific reasons and relevant examples.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.5

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, a paragraph about long holidays, a contrasting paragraph about shorter holidays, and a conclusion. Transitions such as “Furthermore,” “On the other hand,” and “to put it in a nutshell” help signal the stages of your argument. However, progression within paragraphs is not always clear. The first paragraph combines a general claim about learning habits with the effects of heat, while the second moves from syllabus completion to motivation without explaining the connection. Some linking is also awkward, as in “while those who take short breaks have seen normal.” Use one main idea per paragraph, explain how each point supports your position, and make references between ideas clearer.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use some vocabulary relevant to the topic, including “dehydrated,” “curriculum,” “motivation,” and “student performance.” These choices show an attempt to discuss education and health rather than relying entirely on very basic terms. However, the range is limited, and several inaccurate or unnatural expressions make parts of the message difficult to follow: “lose lack of motivation,” “have seen normal,” and “a risk factor for students which may proceed lack of learning habbits.” Spelling errors such as “syllablus,” “diadvantages,” and “habbits” also reduce accuracy. Build a more precise set of phrases for describing benefits and drawbacks, and check spelling and collocations carefully. For example, say that students “may lose motivation” rather than “lose lack of motivation.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentence forms, including a contrast introduced by “While” and a sentence beginning “Furthermore.” This gives the response some structural variety. However, complex sentences are often faulty, and errors sometimes make the intended meaning unclear. For example, “While some of the countries offer … that can be a risk factor” has an unclear grammatical connection, and “those students who take longer breaks lose lack of motivation” has an incorrect verb construction. There are also problems with articles and sentence boundaries, as in “on a actual timeline,” and punctuation is inconsistent. Practise building clear subject–verb sentences first, then add subordinate clauses only when their relationship to the main idea is clear.

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