Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-10-01

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)

Reducing the number of flights, or stoping it altogether can have very positive effects on the environment. It would have some disadvantages too, but overall, it will outweigh all those disadvantages as a more cleaner and safer environment will be ahead of this step.

The pollution caused by the air traffic is far more dangerous than the pollution caused by city traffic. When a engine works, it emits some very seriously toxic chemical into the air, causing air pollution. When, we inhale oxygen from this environment, these chemical went inside our lungs with that oxygen, causing very serious health issues like cancer.

To stop these issues, we need to control air pollution and make our environment clean. In accordance, the step to reduce flights is very appreciable, as it is an environment friendly strategy. Although, some individuals and businesses might face some losses over these strategy, but they must cover it through converting their in-person meetings into online one also giving a push to the advanced technology. However, some serious concern where taking a flight is must condition, should be done using commercial flights instead of the private jets, and must be supported by an alternative technology in the future like some 'EV Flight' invention, which would be environment friendly.

So, in the closing statement, I would preferably say that, the step to reduce the air travel at commercial level, is a big step toward green and friendly environment, and it must be supported by the government and the technological departments so that, the businesses won't have to face serious losses.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

The response addresses all parts of the task by discussing both the environmental benefits and the disadvantages of reducing air travel, and a clear position is presented. However, the development of ideas is uneven. For instance, the discussion on air pollution leading to cancer touches upon a relevant point, but the ideas concerning business impacts and alternatives like 'EV Flight' are somewhat limited and under-developed. While the main stance is clear throughout that the environmental advantages outweigh the drawbacks, the arguments would benefit from greater elaboration and more specific examples to fully explore both sides of the issue.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The essay displays a coherent overall arrangement with a recognizable introduction, body paragraphs, and a concluding summary. Progression is generally maintained, though some transitions feel a bit mechanical, such as 'In accordance, the step' or 'So, in the closing statement'. Paragraphing is used to separate ideas, but within the paragraphs, referencing and logical links are occasionally slightly loose. Cohesive devices are employed, but they are sometimes repetitive or lack seamless integration, which prevents the progression from feeling entirely smooth and natural throughout the response.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

An adequate range of vocabulary is used for the task, allowing the writer to communicate their thoughts on pollution and travel. Attempts are made to use less common vocabulary, such as 'environment friendly strategy' and 'commercial level', though these sometimes suffer from minor collocation or word-formation issues like 'a more cleaner'. There are a few word choice and spelling errors, such as 'stoping' instead of 'stopping' and 'a engine' instead of 'an engine', but these do not seriously impede communication and the meaning remains clear to the reader.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating some control over structure. However, there are noticeable grammatical errors throughout the text, including subject-verb agreement issues ('When a engine works', 'these chemical went'), incorrect article usage, and punctuation slips. Although complex structures are attempted, they are often somewhat faulty or awkwardly phrased, such as 'some serious concern where taking a flight is must condition'. These errors occur regularly, yet they rarely impede overall communication, placing the grammatical control securely within this range.

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