Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-10-04

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)

Primary and secondary schools have summer holidays for two or more months in many nations.These long holidays can be vital for students as they provide valuable time for extra circular activites and relaxation, with that shorter holidays can be considered favourable for students as well.This essay will discuss both these points of view.

Extensive summer holidays holds imense importance for the well being and developement of students, these holidays lasting two or more months presents them with plenty of time to reflect upon them and their calmness. Summer holidays brings with them opporunity for the students to get introduced with discipline that are out of thier normal eduction to explore the outter world and to learn a meaniful skill which can help them later.This time period is enough for learning and relaxation, which brings about a relief for student from their yearly education's strict time table and focus on their mental health. For example many young students join summer vocational training center where they learn to cook , swim or even play their favourite sports.This time off eventually is a relief and developement for young learners.

Other time of holidays presented to these learners are short holidays that comes around weekly known as the weekend and also a small semester break lasting 10-15 days, these shorter holidays brings about their own benifits.The weekend is particularly more important as it gives these younng students a break from the hefty week and give them a time to reflect upon their progress or prepare for upcoming week, similarly the semester or term break also brings a short period of time off that can be utilized for planning and relaxation. For example when I was in primary school I was encourged by the managment to refelct and rest in these smaller holidays.Which is much needed for the students.

In my opinions both of these holiday types the longer one and the shorter one are vital in their ways, both granted at different time period throughout the year presents both opporunites and rest.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

The response addresses all parts of the task, discussing both the value of long school holidays and arguments in favour of shorter ones, but some ideas remain under-developed or unclear. For instance, the discussion on long holidays touches upon valuable aspects like relaxation and vocational training, but the supporting arguments lack extension and tend to generalize. Similarly, the arguments for shorter holidays are introduced but not fully expanded with strong, detailed examples. The position is generally clear throughout the essay, yet the limited development of supporting points places this aspect firmly in the middle band range. To achieve higher marks, the writer needs to fully extend and support all main ideas with more robust examples and thorough explanations rather than relying on brief mentions.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The essay displays an overall coherent arrangement with a clear paragraph-by-paragraph structure that addresses the introduction, the two body paragraphs, and a brief conclusion. However, cohesion is sometimes mechanical and referencing can be unclear, such as the transitional phrase 'with that shorter holidays can be considered' or 'Other time of holidays presented to these learners'. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate distinct points about long and short holidays, but the flow between sentences occasionally feels disjointed due to repetitive phrasing and inaccurate cohesive devices. To progress further, the writer should use a wider variety of cohesive ties more naturally and ensure that referencing pronouns clearly link back to their intended antecedents without causing ambiguity for the reader.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

The vocabulary used represents a limited but minimally adequate range for the task, though noticeable errors occur in word choice, word form, and spelling. Examples of lexical inaccuracies include 'extra circular activites' instead of extracurricular activities, 'imense' instead of immense, 'developement', 'opporunites', and 'eduntion'. Furthermore, some collocations are awkward, such as 'learn to introduce with discipline that are out of thier normal eduction'. These errors reflect an attempt to use less common vocabulary, but frequent spelling mistakes and minor slips in word choice cause occasional difficulty for the reader. To improve, the writer must focus on accurate spelling, correct word forms, and natural collocations to convey meaning more precisely.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The writer demonstrates a limited range of structures, relying mostly on simple sentences alongside attempts at complex forms that are frequently faulty. There are noticeable errors in grammar, punctuation, and agreement throughout the text. For example, subject-verb agreement errors are present, such as 'Extensive summer holidays holds imense importance', where a plural subject is paired with a singular verb. Punctuation issues also occur, including run-on sentences and comma splices like 'developement of students, these holidays lasting two or more months presents them with plenty of time'. These frequent errors in grammar and punctuation require effort from the reader to untangle meaning. To reach a higher standard, the writer needs to incorporate a wider variety of error-free complex sentence structures and carefully check for agreement and punctuation.

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