Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-09-02

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 many countries this concept has been followed for many years and is still continueing of giving holidays to primary and secondary schools.

Long schoold holiday are important for students to understand the value and knowledge they are receiving from there schools. Back in my days when I had such long school holidays I used to be very happy and excited at first. But as some time passed I used to get bored and start to really miss school as well as seeing my friends daily. School give us education combined with fun activites and doing those with friends was a very delightful experience and a fond memory. Plus with long school holidays students get a chance to study some of the material beforehand this makes it easy for them and helps them to prepare for exams earlier. Longer holidays not only benefit the student but also gives a break to the teacher.

Schools holidays should be shorter because only some parents utilize the holidays properly. Making their childern study even in the holiday but other do not. So instead of wasting time which can be added in to get the teacehrs some time to cover the syllabus slowly and clamly. that is because when the days are less there is less time to study. This would give the students time to study without having to stress. like I remember not wanting to study just because I was on holidays and my mother use to lecture me that I should not waste this time.

In conclusion long holidays are better as it would benefit the teacher and the student to relax. On the other hand shorter holidays would help the student to study without worring about time. the teacher although might not get the break they deserve.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses both parts of the prompt, discussing the value of long holidays and the arguments for shorter ones. However, the development of ideas is somewhat superficial. For example, the point about students studying during holidays is mentioned but not fully explored in terms of academic impact. The position is generally clear, but the conclusion is slightly contradictory, as it suggests long holidays are better while simultaneously acknowledging the benefits of shorter ones without a clear synthesis. To reach a higher band, you should provide more detailed, logical support for your arguments rather than relying on personal anecdotes.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organised into paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the structure. However, the use of cohesive devices is often mechanical or inaccurate. For instance, the transition 'Plus with long school holidays' is informal and lacks sophistication. Referencing is sometimes unclear, such as in the second paragraph where the connection between parents' utilization of holidays and the teacher's syllabus is disjointed. The progression of ideas within paragraphs is occasionally interrupted by grammatical errors, which makes the flow feel somewhat fragmented.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The range of vocabulary is adequate for the task but lacks the precision and variety required for higher bands. You rely on basic terms like 'happy', 'bored', and 'good'. There are also several word-choice errors, such as 'continueing' (spelling) and 'clamly' (spelling/usage). While the meaning is generally conveyed, the lack of sophisticated collocations or topic-specific vocabulary (e.g., 'academic curriculum', 'rejuvenation', 'pedagogical benefits') limits the score. Focus on expanding your vocabulary to include more academic and precise terminology.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

There is a mix of simple and some complex sentence structures, but the frequency of errors is high. Common issues include subject-verb agreement ('School give us', 'holidays... gives a break'), incorrect verb tenses ('is still continueing'), and punctuation errors, such as sentence fragments ('So instead of wasting time which can be added in to get the teacehrs some time to cover the syllabus slowly and clamly.'). These errors occur throughout the text and occasionally impede the reader's understanding. You need to focus on basic sentence construction and proofreading for grammatical accuracy.

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