Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-09-12

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 many regions of world, students of primary and secondary schools experience summer holidays for two or more than two months. These long vacations can be necessary as pupils learn some practical skills during these days whereas shorter school holidays have their own significance in a way that students get less time to waste in unnecessary activites.

First of all, long summer holidays are the days children impatiently wait for the whole year as they do many skillful activites. Moreover, there are many vocational training centres in these countries that teach practical skills, for example, learning a new language, swimming, archery, boxing, baking, and many more. Besides acquiring new skills, children visit their relatives and also travel somewhere. In this manner, vacations of two months or more do not get wasted yet utilized in the best way possible.

Conversely, shorter school holidays in primary and secondary schools have their own importance because it become less likely for students to forget what they have learnt the whole year and get involve in inessential engagements. Additionaly, kids only relax in this short time and gather energy for the coming hectic days. Another benefit of less number of holidays is that children do not have to struggle more to get back to the routine.

In conclusion, both the options of long summer holidays and short holidays are essential in their own way as first is good to gain practical skills other than school curriculum while second can be helpul for the children who quickly get distracted, respectively.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response addresses all parts of the task by discussing both the value of long school holidays and the arguments in favour of shorter ones. A clear position is maintained throughout the essay. The ideas are generally relevant, such as mentioning skill acquisition like swimming or archery for long holidays, and routine adjustment for shorter ones. However, some arguments lack deep extension; for instance, the points about shorter holidays could be developed further with concrete examples rather than general statements about relaxation. Overall, the task is handled adequately, satisfying the requirements for Band 6.5, leaning towards Band 7 for covering all parts of the prompt with clear stances.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay presents a clear logical organisation with a traditional four-paragraph structure comprising an introduction, two body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Cohesive devices are employed to connect ideas, such as "First of all," "Moreover," and "Conversely." However, referencing and cohesion are occasionally faulty or mechanical, as seen in the concluding sentence where the use of "first" and "second" paired with "respectively" is awkward and confusing. Paragraphing is used sufficiently to separate the contrasting viewpoints, maintaining an overall coherent arrangement throughout the text.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The student demonstrates an adequate vocabulary range for the task, attempting less common items such as "vocational training centres," "curriculum," and "distracted." There are, however, several lexical and spelling errors that affect precision, such as "activites" (activities), "Additionaly" (Additionally), and the slightly unnatural phrase "get involve in inessential engagements." Despite these inaccuracies, communication is not impeded, and the vocabulary used is sufficient to convey the intended meaning, aligning well with the Band 6 descriptors.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The writer employs a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating some control over grammar with complex structures like relative clauses and conditional-like phrasing (e.g., "vacations of two months or more do not get wasted yet utilized in the best way possible"). However, there are noticeable grammatical errors and awkward phrasings throughout, such as "In many regions of world," "it become less likely," and "do not have to struggle more." Punctuation and article usage need refinement. The errors do not impede communication, placing the response firmly in the Band 6 category.

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