Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-09-16

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)

It is often argued that primary and secondary school close for two months or more in the summer holidays. while other believe that favour of shorter summer holidays. Primary and secondary schools close for two months or more in the summer holidays. This is mainly because summer holidays give students time to rest from schools.

The first reason why i hold this view is that summer holidays give students time to rest from schools. After month of study and exam, children need a break to recover mentally and physically. A long holidays allow them to spend time with family, travel, play and explore hobbies that they cannot do during school.

teachers also have benefit, as they can rest, plan new lessons and take training . For families in villages, this time is useful to parents in farming and other work.

This is the biggest argument. After 2-3 months off, students forget alot . Studies show children lose 20-30% of maths, reading skills over a long summer break. After summer holidays almost 1 month is spent revising the old lessons, not learning the new ones . Younger children and primary students are affected the most.

In my opinion, a two months holidays is too long. A break of four to six weeks is enough for rest. School should use the remaining time for short summer classes, sport, art or skill-based activies. This would prevent learning loss while still giving student enjoyment, Althrough rest is important, education should not be stopped for such a long period.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses both parts of the prompt, discussing the value of long holidays (mental rest, family time) and arguments for shorter breaks (learning loss, wasted revision time). However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited and repetitive, particularly in the introduction where sentences are disjointed and restate the prompt awkwardly (e.g., 'while other believe that favour of shorter summer holidays'). The writer's position is clear by the conclusion, suggesting a four to six-week break, which satisfies the requirement to present a clear stance. To reach a higher band, the arguments need deeper explanation and better integration of specific examples rather than brief, generalized statements.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay has an overall coherent arrangement with a clear stance presented in the conclusion. However, paragraphing is somewhat problematic and disjointed. For instance, the paragraph starting with 'This is the biggest argument' abruptly introduces the drawback of long holidays without a clear introductory topic sentence linking it to the previous points. Cohesive devices are used, but referencing is sometimes unclear, and transitions between paragraphs feel mechanical. Paragraphing choices need to be more deliberate, separating distinct arguments into clearly delineated sections with logical signposts to guide the reader smoothly through the discussion.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary used is adequate for the task, allowing the writer to communicate basic ideas about education and holidays. However, the range is limited, and there are noticeable vocabulary and spelling errors, such as 'alot' instead of 'a lot', 'Althrough' instead of 'Although', and awkward phrasing like 'teachers also have benefit'. The writer attempts some less common vocabulary such as 'over-generalise', 'activies', and 'skill-based', but these are accompanied by errors. To improve, the student should focus on precise word choices, correct spelling, and expanding their range of functional academic collocations related to education.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The response demonstrates a mix of simple and some complex sentence forms, such as conditional or concessive clauses ('Although rest is important, education should not be stopped...'). However, there are frequent grammatical errors, particularly with subject-verb agreement (e.g., 'primary and secondary school close', 'A long holidays allow') and article usage ('a two months holidays'). Punctuation errors, such as uncapitalized words and stray spaces before punctuation marks, are also present. While these errors do not completely impede communication, their frequency prevents the essay from achieving a higher band score, as error-free sentences are not in the majority.

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

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