Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-10-02

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 recent years, holidays have grabbed much attention regarding primary and secondary schools education systems in various countries. Many arguments exist regarding the duration of school holidays with some people suggesting long holidays while other oppose the suggestion.

Most of the schools are being closed all over the world for 2 to 3 months usually named as "summer vacations." They hold a great value in terms of mental and physical relaxation. Students often get frustrated from the daily grind of school, the workload and the lack of sleep. They usually stay motivated throughout the year because of these vacations to get their stess off. Many students visit their beloved ones in vacations while other spend their vacations by enrolling in some innovative courses.i.e; many academies offer AI and basic skilled courses for students specially in summers to let them learn the skills they know.

A great number of arguments exist in favour of short holidays because students think that they must be allowed atleast 2 months vacations from the whole year contribution. While some parents argue that students stay active when they routinely go to school but turn lazy in vacation. However, some parents believe that their children must be allowed with some time to enjoy or travel.

In my opinion, holidays are the right of students to kick off the daily frustration and when they come back to schools, they come with refreshed minds and with great enthusiasm. It's entirely dependent on a student that weather he spends his vacations on the bed or getting involved in some healthy activities to go back to the school carrying some new experienes to share with friends

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

The response addresses the prompt by discussing both the value of long holidays and the arguments for shorter ones, alongside a personal view. However, the ideas remain somewhat limited and under-developed. For instance, the discussion on the value of holidays mentions mental relaxation and AI courses, but these points are not fully extended with concrete explanations or robust examples. Similarly, the arguments for shorter holidays are generalized through vague mentions of student and parent opinions rather than exploring deeper educational or societal impacts. To move higher, the response would need to present fully elaborated ideas with clear, well-supported arguments throughout all sections of the prompt.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

There is a basic organization to the essay with clear paragraph breaks separating the introduction, body points, and conclusion. However, the overall progression is somewhat disjointed. Cohesive devices are used awkwardly or repetitively, such as the frequent reliance on transitional phrases like 'While some parents argue' and 'However,' which creates a mechanical feel rather than a smooth, logical flow. Referencing can also be unclear, as seen in the final paragraph where pronoun reference lacks precision. Achieving a higher standard requires more sophisticated, unobtrusive linking words and a stronger, more fluid logical progression between sentences and paragraphs.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The vocabulary used is adequate for communicating the main ideas, but the range is limited and contains noticeable inaccuracies. The writer attempts some less common vocabulary and phrases, such as 'daily grind,' 'stess off,' and 'innovative courses.i.e;', but these contain spelling errors ('stess') or inappropriate punctuation and awkward collocations. Word choices such as 'beloved ones' instead of family members or loved ones, and 'weather' instead of 'whether' reveal limitations in precision. To improve this score, the writer needs to incorporate a wider variety of natural, precise lexical items and collocation patterns with fewer errors in word choice and spelling.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The writer demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, but attempts at complex structures are often faulty. There are frequent errors in grammar and punctuation that can cause some difficulty for the reader, such as missing articles ('education systems'), incorrect prepositions ('in vacations' instead of 'during vacations'), and flawed punctuation with abbreviations ('courses.i.e;'). Furthermore, issues with subject-verb agreement and word forms appear throughout the text. To reach a higher level, the writer must produce a greater proportion of error-free complex sentences and exercise tighter control over grammatical patterns, articles, and punctuation.

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