Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-10-25

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 5.0)

In most of the regions, the educational institutes take breaks of atleast 2 months or more in the summer season. While the extended vacations in the schools provide an opportunity to students to relax and develop theri interests. Number of people argue that the school holiday should be shorter would be more beneficial. This essay will discuss the value of long holidays and reason why reducing their duration could be advantageous.

There are several benefits for long holidays in primary and secondary schools. Firstly, the major reason is that student require sufficient time to recover from the pressure of academic pressure. During the school year, student's spend several hours attending classes , completing homeworks and preparing for the examinations. A lengthy breaks, keep the children refreshing and prepare them for their after holiday schhol, It also relax and motivated the mind of the learners. Secondly, At the time of vacations, they can do extra curriculam activities such as sports, travelling and learning new things that they are not doing while attending the schools. For Instamnce, They can join the swimming classes, travel to some their favourite places with their families. These activities keep them physically, emotionally and socially stronger.

On the other hand, there is a major argument on smaller schjool holidays. First and foremost reason behind this is that the students may forget important information during an extended breaks, particulary in subjects such as mathematics and science. Shorte holiday could help

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.5

You introduce both sides of the question and give relevant reasons for long holidays, including recovery from academic pressure and time for sports, travel, and other interests. However, the response addresses the task only partially: the case for shorter holidays is introduced but not developed beyond the claim that students may forget information, and the final sentence is unfinished (“Shorte holiday could help”). The value of long holidays is also explained in broad terms, with limited development of how the examples benefit students. The response is 242 words, below the required 250, which further limits the opportunity to complete and support both parts. Develop the shorter-holiday argument and finish with a clear conclusion.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, a paragraph on long holidays, and a paragraph beginning to discuss shorter holidays. Sequencing words such as “Firstly,” “Secondly,” and “On the other hand” help signal the direction of the argument. However, the overall progression is incomplete because the final paragraph stops after an unfinished point, leaving the discussion without a conclusion. Some links are also mechanical, and the opening sentence of the first body paragraph repeats the idea of benefits before specifying them. Use clearer links between each reason and its explanation, and ensure each paragraph develops a complete point. A brief concluding paragraph would give the response a more finished overall shape.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use some relevant vocabulary for the topic, including “academic pressure,” “extra curricular activities,” “examinations,” and “physically, emotionally and socially.” These choices show an attempt to discuss education and student wellbeing. However, the range is limited and several word-choice, collocation, and spelling errors make parts less natural or harder to follow, such as “keep the children refreshing,” “homeworks,” “schhol,” and “Instamnce.” There is also repetition of “holidays” and “students.” Aim for accurate, natural combinations and check spelling carefully. More precise terms for the effects of breaks and for the risks of long holidays would help express your ideas more clearly.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentence forms, including a contrast in the introduction and clauses beginning “that” and “while.” However, control is inconsistent, and errors sometimes make the meaning difficult to follow. For example, “student require” has a subject–verb agreement error, while “During the school year, student's spend” uses an incorrect apostrophe and agreement. The sentence “A lengthy breaks, keep the children…” has problems with article, number, and punctuation, and the final “Shorte holiday could help” is incomplete. Review agreement, singular and plural forms, articles, and sentence boundaries. Building accurate sentences first will make your attempts at complex structures more effective.

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