Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-08-03
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)
Many schools gives students a long summer holiday every year. Some people think it is good for children, but others believe the holidays should be shorter. This essay will talk about both ideas.
Long school holidays are good for students. as they relax after many months of studying. They also have more time to play games, travel with their families, and Visit friends and relatives. Some students join sports club or learn new things. These activities help students enjoy their free time and fell happy before they return to school.
However, there are also reasons why some people want shorter school holidays. First, students can forget many things they learned during there school life. When the students come back teacher need to teach the old lesson again which will cause a long period of the new course. Secondly, Many parents works daily so it is difficult for them to take care of their children far a long school holidays. Also, Some of the students waste their time watching TV, Mobile phones and playing games instead of Learning something new in the summer vacation.
In my opinion, bot short and long school holidays have good points. Student needs time to rest, but every long school holidays is not good for learning. I think school should make summer holidays a little shorter but not that shorter which will affect students mental health. This will help students remember there topics which means that it will help the in their memory. This will also give students enough time to spend time with their friends and family.
Other countries must act like china as Chinese people play a game in which the students decide there own length of the school holidays. like u will have to bounce the ball and if the balls falls the number it will fall it will be your holidays. From this students gain confidence.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The essay addresses both parts of the prompt, discussing the value of long holidays and the arguments for shorter ones. However, the development is uneven. The first two body paragraphs are relevant, but the final paragraph introduces an anecdotal and confusing example about a 'ball game' in China, which is not a credible or logical argument for the topic. This detracts from the overall quality of the response. While a position is stated, the supporting ideas in the final section lack the academic rigor expected at higher bands. To improve, ensure all examples are logical and directly support your main arguments.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The essay is organised into paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the structure. There is an attempt to use cohesive devices such as 'However', 'First', and 'Secondly'. However, the flow between ideas is sometimes mechanical, and the transition into the final paragraph is abrupt and lacks logical connection to the previous points. Referencing is occasionally unclear, such as in the final paragraph where the explanation of the 'game' is difficult to follow, making the progression of ideas feel disjointed. Improving the use of linking phrases and ensuring each paragraph has a clear, unified focus would enhance the coherence.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, allowing the writer to express basic ideas. There are some attempts at topic-specific vocabulary, such as 'mental health' and 'academic', but the range is limited. There are also several word-choice errors, such as 'fell happy' (instead of 'feel') and 'there topics' (instead of 'their'). The vocabulary is often repetitive, and the essay lacks the more sophisticated or precise lexical items that would demonstrate a higher level of control. Focusing on synonyms and accurate word forms will help improve this score.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The essay contains a mix of simple and some complex sentence structures. However, there are frequent grammatical errors that occur throughout the text, such as subject-verb agreement issues ('Many schools gives', 'parents works', 'Student needs') and incorrect pronoun usage ('there' instead of 'their'). Punctuation is also inconsistent, with some sentences starting with lowercase letters after periods or having fragmented structures. While these errors do not completely impede communication, they are frequent enough to lower the score. A more careful proofreading process to check for basic agreement and spelling errors would be highly beneficial.
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