Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-10-16

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)

In many countries , Schools provide students with summer holidays lasting two months or more.

While long holidays offer several benefits to students, there are also arguments in favour of shorter school breaks. This essay discuss both the views.

On the one hand, long school holidays have several reasons. The main reason is that childern can focus on learning the new skills. This is because due to the long holidays they can complete the course successfully. For example, students who are going to couching classes to learn cricket. So, they need some much of dedication and hard work and also physical fitness.

Another advantage is that learner who are trying to learn a new language , this activity takes almost long time to learn completely. As a result, this develop the childern personality and great knowledge and get experiece while learn a new things. Therefore , extended summer holidays can play a import role in student's overall developement and well-being.

on the other hand, there are several arguments in favour of shorter school holidays. one major reason is that there is a chance to forgetting the concepts of maths, physics, chemistry concepts so there are ready to learn new concepts while school are reopened . This means that due to this holidays they may focus on developing other skills, so , there is a chance to forget memorize the concepts. For instance, students can reduce the burden of parents so that they can help doing work in household. For this reason, shorter school breaks can help students maintain their academic progress and learning habits.

In conclusion , long school holidays allow stundets to develop any new skills and get some experience in the long holidays period, whereas, shorter school holidays can make students remind the concepts and keep them free to learn the new concepts in the class. Both approaches have advantages, and the ideal duration should balance students' academic needs with their personal well-being.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You address both questions and present a balanced overall view: long holidays can support skill development, while shorter breaks may help students retain academic knowledge. The examples of learning cricket and a new language are relevant, and the conclusion restates the contrast. However, the response only partially develops the task. The value of long holidays is explained mainly through learning new skills, while the case for shorter holidays shifts between forgetting schoolwork and helping with household work; the latter point is not clearly connected to shorter breaks. Some explanations are also unclear, such as saying students can “complete the course successfully” because of a holiday. Develop each argument with a clearer cause-and-effect explanation and a specific example.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a coherent overall arrangement, with an introduction, separate paragraphs for the two sides, and a conclusion that summarises the contrast. Linking phrases such as “On the one hand,” “As a result,” and “In conclusion” help signal the direction of the discussion. However, cohesion is sometimes mechanical, and some links do not make the relationship between ideas clear. For example, “For instance” introduces household work after a point about forgetting academic concepts, so the example does not clearly support the preceding claim. References such as “this activity” and “this holidays” are also unclear. Use transitions only where the logical connection is explicit, and make each paragraph develop one central argument.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use some task-relevant vocabulary, including “overall development,” “academic progress,” “learning habits,” and “well-being,” which helps communicate the main topic. However, the range is limited and several word-choice, collocation, word-form, and spelling errors make parts of the response difficult to interpret. Examples include “going to couching classes,” “some much of dedication,” “get experiece,” and “make students remind the concepts.” Repetition of “concepts,” “learn,” and “holidays” also limits flexibility. Build a more accurate set of phrases for discussing education and retention, and check spelling and word forms carefully. More precise expressions would make your arguments clearer without requiring unnecessarily advanced vocabulary.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and complex sentence forms, including clauses introduced by “While,” “because,” and “whereas.” This gives the response some structural variety, and the overall meaning is usually recoverable. However, control is inconsistent, particularly in longer sentences. For example, “This essay discuss both the views” has subject–verb disagreement, while “there is a chance to forgetting” uses an incorrect verb pattern. In “students who are going to couching classes,” the verb construction is also faulty. Sentence boundaries and punctuation are sometimes awkward, and capitalisation at the start of sentences is inconsistent. Practise accurate verb forms and patterns, then divide complex explanations into shorter sentences when needed.

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