Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-11-02

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)

Nowadays many primary and secondary school give long holidays for two months or more in summer season to their students and remain closed for 2 months.

Summer holidays are very important and can be useful for students in many ways. First point is that many students join extracurricular classes to enhance their skills and open more gates for oppurtunities. During my school time i used to join cricket to develop my batting and wicket-keeping skills which would help in playing sports and make me fit as it was a physical activity.

Second point is majority schools give holiday homework and assignment tasks to students which help them to improve their grey areas and score good marks in their examainations. When i was in school i used to get a lot of assignments in my summer vactions and these assignments were very useful as these were the practise sheets for our examinations. The temperature also rises with extreme heat and many students faint due extreme humidity.

There are many arguments in favour of shorter vacations. The first major argument is that many parents complain to teachers that their child is playing video games and watching television all day and gaining nothing which all makes them lazy and reduce their overall development. Second major argument is that children suffer from homework pressure which affects their mental health and in addition to this during summer vacactions suicidal cases rises very vibrantly. Recently a case was registered which stated that suicide was commited by aa student of class 6th due to academic pressure of homework.

Overall, summer vactions and homework should be reduced so that it does not affect the mental health of students.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You address both questions: the first two body paragraphs explain benefits of long holidays, while the third gives reasons for shorter breaks, and your conclusion states a preference for reducing holidays. The cricket example makes one benefit concrete, and you also mention rest from extreme heat and concerns about children’s use of free time. However, several points are asserted rather than explained. The link between holiday homework and the value of a long break is unclear, and the claim about rising suicide cases is serious but unsupported and not clearly connected to shorter holidays. Develop each argument with a clear explanation and relevant evidence, and make your position on the appropriate length of holidays more precise.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure, with an introduction, separate paragraphs for the two sides, and a concluding opinion. Signposting such as “First point,” “Second point,” and “There are many arguments in favour” helps readers identify the main sections. However, progression within paragraphs is sometimes weak: the discussion moves from homework to extreme heat without a clear link, and the final paragraph combines screen use, homework pressure, and suicide in a way that feels abrupt. Repeated “first/second major argument” phrasing also makes the organisation mechanical. Group related ideas together, use transitions that show how one point follows from another, and ensure each paragraph develops a focused central idea.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use enough topic-related vocabulary to communicate the main ideas, including “extracurricular classes,” “physical activity,” “mental health,” and “academic pressure.” There are also attempts at more specific expressions, such as “grey areas” and “overall development.” However, the range is limited and several choices or spellings are inaccurate or unnatural, including “open more gates for opportunities,” “summer vactions,” “examainations,” and “suicidal cases rises very vibrantly.” These errors sometimes make the intended meaning less clear. Aim for more natural collocations and check spelling carefully; for example, describe students as “developing skills” or “broadening their opportunities,” and use precise wording when discussing serious outcomes.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and more extended sentences, including clauses with “which” and “as,” and the main message is generally understandable. However, control is inconsistent, particularly in agreement, articles, verb forms, and sentence construction. For example, “many primary and secondary school give” needs a plural subject and verb, while “these assignments were very useful as these were the practise sheets” repeats the subject awkwardly. In “many students faint due extreme humidity,” the preposition and article are missing; “children suffer from homework pressure which affects” also needs clearer clause punctuation. Practise checking subject–verb agreement and building complex sentences around one clear main clause. More accurate sentence patterns would make your arguments easier to follow.

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