Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-09-27

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 individuals believe that flying causes environmental harm. So, they decide to reduce the number of flights they take, and eventually plan to stop flying altogether. I believe that this development to protect environment doesn't outweigh the disadvantages for different buisnesses and many individuals.

One of the advantages of reducing air travel is that it reduces the emissions produced in the air. This keeps our environment safe and air clean. There are a number of other transport facilities that a passenger can use to reach their desired destination, especially for shorter journeys where trains and cabs could be used. For example, in Pakistan, many individuals travelling form Islamabad to Karachi prefer the air transport over the local trains and buses. They should consider travelling via these modes because they are now technologically advanced and are comfortable for long travels like this.

Although, reducing air travel seems to provide an environmental benefit. There are a number of issues that would arise because of it. Firstly, the only transport we would be left with for long journeys are ships. They damage the enviornment in their own way and take a lot of time to reach from one point to the other. Planes are the only mode that not only saves time, but is considered as one of the safest way of travel in the world. It would be harder for every individual to meet their families and travel across countries as it would take a lot of time with other available form of transportation. In the same way different buisnesses need their employees to travel for work and a number of other problems would originate if they couldn't fly. As we have already seen during the war time recently where flights were banned for a couple of days. Everyone suffered that consequence in their own way.

In conclusion, it might sound right to stop flying to protect environment. But, a number of other problems originate because of this. A number of individuals and businesses suffer a lot because of this. So, the idea of not flying damges more than what it could save.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

The response addresses all parts of the task, presenting a clear position on whether environmental benefits outweigh disadvantages. In your introduction, you state, 'I believe that this development to protect environment doesn't outweigh the disadvantages for different buisnesses and many individuals.' You explore both sides by acknowledging environmental pros, such as reduced carbon emissions, and contrasting them with cons like increased travel time and economic impacts on businesses. However, some ideas could be extended further. For instance, the example regarding travel between Islamabad and Karachi slightly confuses the argument, as you suggest passengers should take trains because they are comfortable, yet later argue that alternative transport takes too much time. Overall, the main arguments are relevant and directly answer the prompt, positioning this essay comfortably within Band 6.5 to 7.0.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The essay displays a logical overall progression and is divided into clear paragraphs with distinct functions (introduction, environmental benefits, drawbacks, and conclusion). You successfully employ cohesive devices such as 'Firstly', 'Although', and 'In conclusion' to guide the reader through your arguments. However, referencing and cohesion are sometimes faulty or mechanical. For example, starting a sentence with 'Although, reducing air travel seems to provide an environmental benefit' creates a fragmented thought because the clause is left incomplete or disconnected from the following sentence. Paragraphing is used sufficiently, but transitional links between sentences occasionally feel abrupt, keeping the response at a Band 6.0.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

Your vocabulary range is adequate for the task, allowing you to discuss environmental and transport issues clearly using terms like 'emissions', 'technologically advanced', and 'transportation'. However, there are noticeable spelling and word choice errors, such as 'buisnesses' (businesses), 'enviornment' (environment), and 'damges' (damages). Furthermore, phrasing like 'air transport over the local trains' and 'during the war time recently' demonstrates some limitation in natural collocation and precision. While these minor spelling and lexical errors do not impede overall communication, they prevent the essay from achieving a higher band score, placing it squarely at Band 6.0.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You demonstrate a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, using conditional and subordinate clauses such as 'when flights were banned for a couple of days' and 'if they couldn't fly.' There are, however, several grammatical errors and punctuation issues throughout the text. For example, writing 'So, they decide to reduce...' breaks a sentence unnecessarily with a conjunction after a full stop, and 'protect environment' misses the necessary article 'the'. Additionally, punctuation around introductory phrases and dependent clauses is sometimes inconsistent. These errors persist throughout the text, but because they rarely impede overall communication, the response meets the criteria for Band 6.0.

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

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