Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-10-08

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 5.0)

I think, people should stop unnecessary travelling rather than totally stopping to travel. By reducing the unnecessary flying can benefit the environment in terms of pollution. It doesnot mean that people should stop travelling when they are in need or if it is crucial for their personal or bussiness growth.

I believe, people should fly once a year for outing with friends or family or to attend any friend or family function or gathering rather than just flying for uncessary things or small reason. For example, students who are leaving away from their families for studies should visit their homes once a year or in emergency or on occassions rather than visiting at every university break. This will help in maintaing the environmental pollution and also help pesonally in saving air fair.

The idea of reducing number of fly each year is better than to stop flying altogether, because decreasing the number of fly can be helpful for both environment and personal but stop flying can effect both the bussiness and environment. Business is essential for livelihood while the people pay to governments during their earnings as tax help in improving the environment which is effecting by other factors.

The development of this idea might not outweigh the disadvantages for individuals and businesses. Because flying is not only the factor which is affecting the environment, there are other factors too, which are contributing in environmental problems. So, by reducing and maininting the number of fly each year can result in reducing environmental issues rather than totally stop flying.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You give a clear overall view that reducing flights is preferable to stopping them entirely, and you address both environmental effects and consequences for individuals and businesses. The example of students visiting family helps illustrate the personal side. However, the response only partly develops the comparison asked for: the business disadvantage is asserted through “Business is essential for livelihood” but not explained with a concrete example, and the claim that tax payments help improve the environment is unclear. Your final position also shifts toward saying the benefits may not outweigh the disadvantages, without weighing these against the environmental gains. Develop each side with specific reasoning and make your conclusion consistent and explicit.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

The response has a basic paragraph structure, moving from your general view to an example, then to business effects and a conclusion. Linking expressions such as “For example,” “because,” and “So” show an effort to connect ideas. However, progression is not always clear: the third paragraph introduces taxes and environmental improvement without a clear link to the claim about business, and the final paragraph repeats the idea of reducing flights rather than bringing the comparison to a decisive close. Some connections are also awkward, such as “but stop flying can effect both the bussiness and environment.” Organise the essay around distinct points—environmental benefits, individual and business costs, then a direct comparison—and use references that make each relationship clear.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use a small range of relevant vocabulary, including “environmental pollution,” “business,” “livelihood,” and “emergency,” so the main topic is generally understandable. However, vocabulary is repetitive and several word choices or forms make meaning less precise: “number of fly” is repeated, “air fair” is used for the cost of travel, and “maintaining the environmental pollution” does not express the intended idea clearly. There are also noticeable spelling errors, including “bussiness,” “uncessary,” and “occassions.” Build a more varied set of accurate topic phrases and check spelling and collocations carefully; this will help you express the environmental and economic arguments more precisely.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and longer sentences, including a conditional example beginning “students who are leaving away from their families,” and a reason clause introduced by “because.” However, the range is limited, and complex sentences are often faulty. Examples include “By reducing the unnecessary flying can benefit the environment,” where the sentence lacks a clear grammatical subject, and “the people pay to governments during their earnings as tax help,” where the clause structure is difficult to follow. Other recurring issues include “people should fly once a year” after “I believe,” and “stop flying can effect,” which needs a gerund subject and a correctly formed verb. Practise building complete clauses and checking agreement, articles, and sentence boundaries; clearer structures will make your ideas easier to follow.

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