Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-11-01

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,primary and secondary education schools close for two months or extend the holidays during the summer vacation.according to my point of view it is good to give two months of holidays for the students during their summer break.

students can relieve their stress from their daily schedule. long holidays would help the students to discover their hidden talents. They will train themselves in the particular category to enhance their skills.Students will travel to different places and explore different cultures and their history.they calm their brains by engaging themselves in various activities. this ensures to build sportive spirit and self confidence.students can spend more time with their families which would bring a great joy.they will learn household things along with their parents which helps them to survive in future.

I totally disagree with shorter schools holidays because students cannot have suffiecient time to explore things. According to pyscology brain needs to rest after a hard day smilarly students must need longer vacations to rest themselves and make sure to improve themselves.

From my experience i would like to tel about my summer vacation during my school.My summer vacation duration is about two months. since i had enough time, i managed to finish my summer break homework and explore different places . I started to be diciplined and sorted time for my extra circular activities.meanwhile i had a great time with my family,friends and relatives.

Hence granting two months or more holidays in the summer for students is a good idea

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response5.5
Coherence and Cohesion6.0
Lexical Resource5.5
Grammatical Range and Accuracy5.0
Overall5.5

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You give a clear overall preference for longer summer holidays and explain several relevant benefits, including rest, developing talents, family time and travel. Your personal example also helps illustrate how a long break can be used productively. However, the task asks both for the value of long holidays and for arguments in favour of shorter ones. The second part is not really explored: you state that you disagree with shorter holidays, but do not explain why supporters might favour them, such as maintaining learning continuity or reducing the need for childcare. Some benefits are also listed rather than developed. Addressing both sides and explaining a few points with specific consequences would make the response more complete.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a recognisable overall structure: an introduction, a paragraph on benefits, a paragraph rejecting shorter holidays, a personal example and a conclusion. This makes the main position easy to follow. However, progression within paragraphs is sometimes list-like, particularly in the benefits paragraph, where several points follow one another without clear links or explanation. Connectors such as “Hence” and “Meanwhile” are used, but some transitions feel mechanical or do not clearly show the relationship between ideas. The personal example could be linked more explicitly to the earlier claims about rest and skill development. Use clearer topic sentences and develop each paragraph around one main point, with referencing that makes connections between ideas unmistakable.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use a relevant range of vocabulary for the topic, including “hidden talents,” “different cultures,” “self confidence” and “extra circular activities.” These phrases help communicate ideas about students’ development and free time. However, the range is limited by repeated general words such as “students,” “things” and “time,” and several choices or spellings are inaccurate, including “pyscology,” “diciplined” and “extra circular.” Some expressions are also unnatural, such as “calm their brains” and “survive in future,” which can make the intended meaning less precise. Aim for more accurate collocations and topic-specific wording, and check spelling carefully. Replacing vague expressions with precise terms would make your ideas clearer and more convincing.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple sentences and longer structures, for example “students can spend more time with their families which would bring a great joy” and “since I had enough time, I managed to finish…” This shows some ability to connect clauses and explain reasons. However, errors occur frequently and sometimes make the reader pause. Examples include missing or inconsistent sentence capitals, “students must need longer vacations,” and “My summer vacation duration is about two months,” where sentence structure and tense control are weak. Commas are often missing between clauses, and some sentences run together. Practise forming accurate complex sentences with clear subjects and verbs, and check articles, agreement, punctuation and tense consistency when editing.

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