Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-11-12

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 5.5)

In the modern era almost significant proportion of the countries close their primary schools and secondary schools for the 2 months or 3 months.Some people argue that it has no value and they will be in the favour of shorter holidays.I will discuss my supportive ideas in the forthcoming paragraphs.

Predominantly, some people believe that the students will need rest because daily studying and following same routine they need a long break to refresh their mind.In the holidays students can get relief from stress.In the holidays students may play outdoor and indoor games.It not refresh their mind but they will also have chance to learn addtional skill.Apart from it, students are also have enough time spend quality time with their family and friends.They may also travel to any place together with their families.As a result it stengths there family bonds.

However,some people argue that holidays from school will be in short duration.Many students break there daily routine of going school and not properly focous on there homework.The academic performance of the children may fall drop.Moreover, the shorter break help working parents to manage their work and care of the children together.The working parents have less time to take care of childrensAs a result working parents can earn sufficient amount of money to fullfill the daily needs of children.

In conclusion,the break are neccesary to reduce the pressure of academic study on the students.From my point of view there is need of proper balance between duration of holidays from primary and secondary school.

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response5.5
Coherence and Cohesion6.0
Lexical Resource5.5
Grammatical Range and Accuracy5.0
Overall5.5

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You address both questions: the first body paragraph explains the value of a long break through rest, recreation, skill development and family time, while the second gives reasons for shorter holidays, including maintaining study routines and helping working parents. However, these points are mostly listed rather than explained or supported with specific examples. The claim that academic performance may fall is unclear as written, and the discussion of parents’ needs does not fully explain how shorter breaks help them. Your conclusion offers a reasonable view that a balance is needed, but this position is not developed earlier. To strengthen the response, explain the consequences of each main point and give a relevant example for both sides.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a clear overall arrangement: an introduction, separate paragraphs for the two perspectives, and a conclusion. The contrast between the body paragraphs is signalled by “Predominantly” and “However,” and the conclusion returns to the central issue. Within paragraphs, though, ideas are often presented as a sequence of short statements, such as the points about rest, games, skills and family time, without showing how they connect. Repeated openings such as “In the holidays” also make the progression mechanical. Some references are unclear, particularly “It” in “It not refresh their mind.” Use linking phrases to show cause and effect, and connect related points into a more developed line of reasoning.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use a relevant range of topic vocabulary, including “academic performance,” “daily routine,” “working parents,” “stress” and “family bonds.” These choices make the main subject clear, and you attempt some less common expressions such as “quality time.” However, word choice, collocation and spelling errors are noticeable and sometimes make meaning difficult to follow. For example, “almost significant proportion” is not a natural way to describe the number of countries, and “the academic performance … may fall drop” is unclear. There are also misspellings such as “addtional,” “stengths” and “neccesary.” Build accuracy by learning common word partnerships and checking spelling, while avoiding repeated use of basic phrases such as “In the holidays.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple sentences and longer structures, including a reason clause beginning “because” and a result clause introduced by “As a result.” However, the range is limited, and attempts to form more complex sentences are often inaccurate. Examples include “students are also have enough time,” “the shorter break help,” and “there is need,” which show problems with verb forms, agreement and articles. Sentence boundaries and punctuation are also inconsistent: several sentences run together after full stops, and “childrenAs a result” lacks a space or clear punctuation. These errors sometimes make the intended relationships difficult to understand. Practise building accurate sentences with one main clause and a subordinate clause, then check agreement, articles and punctuation.

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