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)

School holidays are a period of joy and happiness for students. In most countries, Primary and secondary schools remain closed for two months or more in the summer vacations. Holidays have now become a debating topic nowadays. From my perspective long summer holidays' advantages outweigh the drawback of long holidays.

Certain people support long school holidays. There are a lot of reasons for it but the most important of them is that most of the parents think that they can easily go on long trips to explore the world. Students can also feel free from the daily grind of school and spend a period of freedom. In hot countries like Qatar, Pakistan and Dubai long summer holidays are now in a higher demand due to its impact on students. In these countries during summer season a lot of infections and viruses spread and students get infected resultantly, they become ill and this may lead to cessation of their studies.

On the other hand, the shorter school vacations also have some benefits from an academic point of view. In countries like Pakistan, students of high school have a lot of syllabus but compared to the syllabus, time is very short and students have to complete it during allocated time period consequently, they have to compromise on their holidays and spend most of the years in completing their syllabus before board exams. Another reason is that the students have regular routine time-table. However, due to long holidays the routine -is disturbed and they get distracted from their studies, involve in other fun activities.

In conclusion, Long school holidays are liked by students and refreshes them for their studies and extra-curricular activities but at the same time few of them distract from the path of their studies.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The student addresses all parts of the prompt by discussing both the value of long school holidays and the arguments in favour of shorter ones, as stated in the introduction and supported throughout the body paragraphs. A clear position is presented in the opening paragraph stating that the advantages outweigh the drawbacks. The ideas are generally relevant, covering travel, student well-being, health reasons in hot climates such as Qatar and Pakistan, and academic workload pressures. However, some arguments lack full extension and deep elaboration; for instance, the point regarding health issues in hot countries touches on important ideas but remains slightly under-developed. Despite minor areas where deeper exploration would strengthen the response, the task is adequately addressed in line with Band 6 requirements.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The response presents a coherent overall arrangement with a clear division into introduction, two body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Paragraphing is utilised appropriately to separate different thematic points, such as the benefits of long holidays versus the benefits of shorter ones. Cohesive devices are present, including transition markers like 'On the other hand', 'In conclusion', and 'Consequently'. However, some logical transitions and referencing are a bit mechanical or repetitive, such as the frequent reliance on 'Another reason is that'. Additionally, punctuation errors around dashes like 'routine -is' slightly detract from the flow. Overall, the organizational structure is easy to follow, supporting a Band 6 score.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The student demonstrates an adequate vocabulary range suitable for the task, successfully attempting some less common lexical items such as 'daily grind', 'cessation', 'extracurricular activities', and 'syllabus'. However, there are notable word choice and collocation inaccuracies, such as 'a debating topic nowadays' instead of 'a subject of debate', 'involve in other fun activities' missing a reflexive pronoun or passive structure, and referencing 'Dubai' as a country rather than a city. Spelling is generally good, but repetition of basic words is noticeable throughout. The vocabulary is sufficient to communicate the main ideas clearly, matching the Band 6 descriptor.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The writer uses a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating attempts at subordination and relative clauses, such as 'In countries like Pakistan, students of high school have a lot of syllabus but compared to the syllabus, time is very short...' There are several grammatical errors and punctuation slips present, including run-on sentences, missing commas after introductory phrases, and awkward preposition usage, such as 'distract from the path of their studies'. However, these errors do not impede communication, and the meaning remains clear throughout the essay. Because of the blend of successful complex structures alongside frequent errors, this performance aligns well with Band 6.

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

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