Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-09-18

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)

The impact of long holidays in several countries has always been debatable with many people believe that the long holidays from school is benificial for children while other reject this notion.

Long vacations from school can help students to work on their hobbies which is also an important part of their upbringing. For instance, having a long period of holidays allow students to join their music and swimming classes. Furthermore, in these countries, parents utilize this period by arranging events and gatherings which can not be happend in other period of the year due to busy schedule of the students. In these countries, summer is always very harsh and it advised to students must stay indoors. Many international organizations are also urge governments of these regions to long summer holidays because children are vulnerable to heat.

On the other hand, there is a considerable debate that schools shouldn't be closed for a longer period. For example, longer vacations can distract students from studies and cause everlasting effects on children. Study shows, the children from these countries are procrastinators and cannot perform better in their professional life. Moreover, many people are also linking it with economics because long holidays can also effect several businesess which ultimate lead to rising in poverty.

Overall, both sides present their opinions on this matter and a balanced approach must considered. In my opinion, the school holidays reduce to one month only and in harsh summer school timings shift in evening time with this we can utilize this period efficiently.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses both parts of the prompt, discussing the value of long school holidays and the arguments for shorter ones, while also presenting a personal opinion in the conclusion. However, the development of ideas remains somewhat superficial. For instance, the mention of joining music and swimming classes is relevant, but the support lacks depth and extension. Similarly, the points regarding economic impacts and weather conditions are stated rather than fully explained or exemplified. To achieve a higher band score, the ideas should be more thoroughly extended and supported with clearer reasoning and more robust examples. Nonetheless, a clear position is maintained throughout the text.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The response has an overall coherent arrangement and follows a logical paragraph structure, moving from an introduction to body paragraphs discussing both perspectives, and concluding with a personal view. Cohesive devices are used to signal shifts in argument, such as 'Furthermore', 'On the other hand', and 'Moreover'. However, cohesion is occasionally mechanical, and referencing is not always clear, as seen in repetitive phrases like 'In these countries'. Paragraphing is generally appropriate, but the logical progression between sentences within paragraphs could be smoother and more sophisticated to warrant a higher score.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

The vocabulary used is adequate for the task, allowing the student to communicate basic ideas clearly. There are attempts at less common vocabulary, such as 'vulnerable', 'procrastinators', and 'substances' (implied by context), but these are accompanied by noticeable inaccuracies in word choice, spelling ('benificial', 'businesess'), and word formation ('the school holidays reduce to one month'). Collocations are sometimes awkward, such as 'everlasting effects on children' in this context. While communication is rarely impeded, these frequent lexical errors place the response firmly in the band 5 range.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating some variety in structure. However, there are frequent grammatical errors throughout the text, including subject-verb agreement issues ('many people believe that the long holidays... is benificial', 'Study shows, the children...'), missing auxiliary verbs ('it advised to students must stay'), and awkward tense usage ('can not be happend'). Punctuation is also occasionally problematic, such as comma splices. These frequent errors cause some difficulty for the reader and prevent the grammar score from reaching a higher band.

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

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