Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-09-22

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Some people have decided to reduce the number of times they fly every year or to stop flying altogether.

Do you think the environmental benefits of this development outweigh the disadvantages for individuals and businesses?

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

Student answer (Band 5.5)

Many people limit flying abroad annually or they completely avoid travelling because this might reduce environmet pollution while i think these trend cannot outweigh the negative impacts for self and also for any commercial activities.

People think travelling in plane produces huge amount of pollutions and consumes huge gas which inturn creates our plannet full of contaminated air making our earth unfit for survival of the people. For instances the gas consumption in plane produces large quantity of air that will be settled in the atmosphere gradually earth experiences long term effects of climate change like melting of snow, increasing volume of water in the sea. Therefore if people stops flying then we are reducing air pollutiion directly but i think for short term purpose it might be total loss in busines.

One of the reason why people frequently travel to different places is because of important business meetings or personal duties, which is why if we stop flying then it has greater effects towards business prspects and personal works. For example, Bhutanese come to bangkok for shopping to restock thier store but if flights are limitted, shopkeepers will not be able to restock their shop gradually resulting in shutting down of their store. simillary if some offices are based in different states people frequently need to visit the office for work. while if planes are limitted for environmental purpose then these people will loose their jobs which is why i reckon for short term purpose environment benifit cannot outweigh the negative effecfs of flying different places by air.

In conclusion, though people decidie to stop travelling abroad by plane or completely stop flying has lots of long term benifits for environment but it cannot out weigh the negative effects towards short term purpose for self and commercial activities.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The student addresses all parts of the prompt, taking a clear position that the environmental benefits do not outweigh the negative impacts for individuals and businesses. The main ideas are relevant and supported with explanations, such as the example of Bhutanese shopkeepers restocking in Bangkok. However, some ideas are slightly under-developed or repetitive, such as the discussion of gas consumption and climate change effects. The reasoning follows a logical path, fitting the Band 6 descriptors where all parts are addressed and a position is presented, though some sections lack the depth or extension seen in higher bands.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The text is divided into four paragraphs, including an introduction, two body paragraphs, and a conclusion, which provides a coherent overall arrangement. Progression is generally discernible, but cohesive devices are sometimes mechanical or repetitive, such as the frequent use of 'while' and 'which is why'. Paragraphing is used, but internal transitions between sentences could be smoother to avoid choppy delivery. Referencing is mostly clear, yet minor issues with cohesive links pull the score to Band 5.5, reflecting a mix of Band 5 and Band 6 characteristics where organisation is present but cohesive devices are sometimes inaccurate or overused.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, attempting some less common words and phrases like 'commercial activities', 'contamination', and 'restock'. However, there are numerous spelling and word-choice errors, such as 'environmet' instead of 'environment', 'pollutiion', 'prspects', 'thier', 'simillary', and 'benifit'. While these errors do not severely impede communication, their frequency prevents the writer from achieving a higher band. The vocabulary is minimally adequate for conveying the core message, aligning with the Band 5 descriptors.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but control is inconsistent. There are frequent grammatical errors, such as missing articles ('in plane', 'in atmosphere'), subject-verb agreement issues ('people stops', 'business benifit cannot'), and run-on sentences with incorrect punctuation, particularly in the first and second paragraphs ('while i think these trend cannot', 'For instances the gas consumption...'). These errors cause some difficulty for the reader and demonstrate that complex structures are often faulty, fitting the Band 5 criteria for grammar.

See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.

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