Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-09-05

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)

The vacation period provided by the primary and secondary schools in many countries is crucial for the students to explore new hobbies such as swimming , football and cricket.

The children at schools study for almost 10 months a year and after the year-end if sufficient amount of time is not provided for rest then they could be exhausted. There are some schools that provide longer holidays compared to others and this helps students to focus more on their leisure activities. In a longer vacation there is enough time for children to build new skills like typing and drawing which can be helpful for their overall development. During the phase of vacation children can also travel to new places to learn different culture and get new experience.

There are some schools that prefer to give shorter holidays to students. The main aim of the school for giving less leaves is for ensuring that the student do not forget their studies. The short vacations

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 4.0

The response is significantly under the required word count of 250 words, reaching only 163 words. Consequently, the task is not fully addressed, and the development of ideas is severely limited. While you touch upon the value of long holidays (hobbies, rest, skill-building) and mention the aim of shorter holidays (academic retention), the second part of the prompt is left incomplete, as the text cuts off abruptly. To improve, you must ensure you provide a full, balanced discussion for both parts of the prompt and meet the minimum length requirement to allow for sufficient idea development and supporting examples.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0

The essay shows a basic attempt at paragraphing, but the abrupt ending prevents a logical conclusion or a cohesive flow. You use some cohesive devices like 'In a longer vacation' and 'During the phase of', but the overall structure is fragmented. The lack of completion makes it difficult to assess the progression of your argument. To improve, focus on using a wider range of linking words (e.g., 'furthermore', 'consequently', 'on the other hand') to connect your ideas more fluidly and ensure each paragraph has a clear topic sentence followed by supporting details.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

Your vocabulary is generally adequate for basic communication, but it lacks the range and precision required for higher bands. You use simple terms like 'new places' and 'new experience', which are repetitive. There is little evidence of less common lexical items or idiomatic language. To improve, try to incorporate more academic vocabulary related to education and personal development. For example, instead of 'give less leaves', use 'reduce the duration of school breaks'. Focus on using more precise collocations to convey your ideas more effectively.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

You demonstrate a mix of simple and some complex sentence structures, but there are noticeable errors. For instance, 'the student do not forget' should be 'students do not forget' (subject-verb agreement). Additionally, 'learn different culture' should be 'learn about different cultures'. While these errors do not completely impede communication, they occur frequently enough to affect the clarity of your writing. To improve, focus on mastering subject-verb agreement, pluralization, and the correct use of articles. Practice writing more complex sentences using subordinating conjunctions to improve your grammatical range.

See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.

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