Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-11-09

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)

In many countries, primary and secondary schools close for two months or more in the summer holidays. What is the value of long school holiday. What are the arguments in favour of shorter school holidays.

On the one hand, the value of long school holiday. Long holiday is a better decision. By long holidays, student can enjoy a lot of out door activities such as playing cricket, football or other outdoor games with friends. Student can also enjoy indoor activities such as watching movies, play online games and they also spend a lot of his or her time with their family.But long school holidays is not good for their studies. Their a lot of time is consumed in long term holidays. They have not completed the syllabus. And as a result failure.

On the other hand, shorter school holiday is a very good decision. Because their much time are saved. Student have more time to study their syllabus. I think it is a better option. By shoter school holidays he do the both studies and games. Some are dull. By giving long term holidays these kind of student donot studies in home and also forget what they will learn. Shorter school holiday is a better option for these kind of student.

In conclusion, although Long term holidays is useful for rest and personal development, short term is better learning and equality. A balanced approach such as a one-month summer break with a short breaks in one year is better for their studies.

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response5.0
Coherence and Cohesion5.0
Lexical Resource5.0
Grammatical Range and Accuracy5.0
Overall5.0

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

You address both questions: you describe benefits of a long break, including outdoor activities and time with family, and argue that shorter holidays leave more time for study and help students retain what they have learned. Your conclusion also gives a clear preference for shorter breaks while acknowledging rest and personal development. However, several points are asserted rather than explained—for example, “And as a result failure” does not clarify how the long break leads to failure, and the claim that shorter holidays promote “equality” is not supported. The response is also 218 words, below the 250-word minimum; 34 words copied from the task prompt were not counted. Develop each main point with a reason or relevant example to address the task more fully.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

The response has a recognisable structure, with an introduction, separate paragraphs for the two positions, and a conclusion. “On the one hand,” “On the other hand,” and “In conclusion” help signal the main stages of the discussion. However, progression within paragraphs is often weak: ideas are presented as short statements, such as “Their a lot of time is consumed” followed by “They have not completed the syllabus” and “And as a result failure,” without clearly showing how they connect. Some linking is mechanical, and references such as “these kind of student” are unclear. Organise each paragraph around a central claim, then connect the explanation and example explicitly; this would make the argument easier to follow.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use enough basic vocabulary to communicate the main ideas, including “outdoor activities,” “personal development,” “syllabus,” and “balanced approach.” The examples of cricket, football, films, and online games also make the discussion concrete. However, the range is limited and several phrases are repeated, particularly “long school holidays,” “shorter school holiday,” and “better option.” Some word choices or combinations are unclear, such as “Their a lot of time is consumed” and “short term is better learning and equality,” which make the intended meaning harder to understand. Aim for more precise expressions and vary repeated terms—for example, refer to “extended summer breaks” and “shorter vacation periods”—while checking spelling and natural word combinations.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt a few different sentence forms, including a contrast between benefits and drawbacks and a concluding sentence beginning “although.” Most sentences, however, rely on simple patterns, and attempts to connect ideas are often incomplete or inaccurate. Examples include “Student can also enjoy indoor activities such as watching movies, play online games,” where the list is not parallel, and “Because their much time are saved,” which is not a complete, correctly formed sentence. Agreement and number errors also occur in “Long school holidays is not good” and “Student have more time.” Practise complete sentences, consistent plural forms, and parallel structures in lists. More accurate control of these basics would make your meaning clearer and support a wider range of sentence structures.

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