Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS General Essentials · 2026-09-16

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

We no longer need to have animals kept in zoos, so zoos should be closed.

Do you agree or disagree?

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

Student answer (Band 5.5)

Nowadays, Zoos are the only place where you can find different animals and birds. Some of them hardly exist in the outside world because most of them already extinct.Some people no longer like this concept of having zoos and keeping animals in them. They think zoos should be fully shut down . I would like to contradict this idea because i beleive having zoos is the only way we can sheild animals from extinction.

As if we look just a decade back , We use to see many birds around us even in our own neighborhood like sparrows , crows and so on . But now we hardly see any of them . They either got killed or flewn away . In addition , they play huge role in teaching and showing todays children those animals in real , what they have just read about in their books . It helps them to understand the behavior and nature of a specific bird or animal . Zoos are the only way where they can actually see them , feed them and

interact .Furthermore , some wild animals like tiger , lion and bear are very dangerous and its not safe to just let them go just like that . They can harm other small animals and humans too . Thus , it is needed that zoos should be open to kept them in and take care of them .

Last but not least , zoos plays a vital role in tourisam , which further helps with the economy of a country .For example in india our national bird is peacock but how often we see them in the outside world . It is important to keep them in zoo to keep them alive.

To summerize, I do not agree with this idea of closing zoos because that is the only place where we can keep wild animals safely and protect most of them from extiction .

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response addresses the prompt directly, presenting a clear position that zoos should not be closed because they protect animals from extinction and serve educational and economic purposes. The writer attempts to support ideas with examples, such as mentioning the decline of sparrows and crows in neighborhoods and noting peacock populations in India. However, some arguments lack deep development and contain sweeping claims, such as stating that zoos are the 'only' way children can see animals or the 'only' place to keep wild animals safely. While all parts of the task are addressed, the depth of extension and nuance places the response solidly in the band 6 category, where relevant ideas are presented but some are slightly under-developed or rely on broad generalisations.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay displays a generally coherent overall arrangement with a clear introduction and conclusion. Paragraphing is utilised to separate distinct ideas, such as educational benefits, public safety, and tourism. However, logical progression is occasionally hindered by faulty cohesion and mechanical transitions. For instance, transitional phrases like 'As if we look just a decade back' and 'Thus, it is needed that' are awkward and unnatural. Furthermore, referencing is sometimes unclear, and punctuation errors around cohesive devices (such as spacing before commas) disrupt the flow. While the overarching structure is easy to follow, the management of cohesive devices and paragraph internal flow reflects band 6 performance.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary used is adequate for the task, allowing the writer to express basic opinions and arguments about wildlife and zoos. There are attempts to use less common items such as 'extinction', 'tourisam', and 'sheild', but these are marred by frequent spelling errors ('beleive', 'sheild', 'flewn', 'extiction', 'summerize') and inaccuracies in word choice or collocation (e.g., 'they either got killed or flewn away', 'tourisam'). While the lexical range permits communication of the main points without major confusion, the frequency of spelling mistakes and awkward phrasing prevents the response from reaching a higher band, making a score of 5.5 appropriate.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, incorporating clauses with 'because', 'although', and relative structures. However, grammatical accuracy is weak throughout the text. There are frequent errors in verb tense and agreement, such as 'most of them already extinct' (missing auxiliary), 'We use to see' (incorrect modal structure), 'zoos plays a vital role' (subject-verb agreement), and 'how often we see them' (incorrect word order in an embedded question). Punctuation is also problematic, with persistent spacing errors before commas and periods. These errors occur regularly and cause occasional strain for the reader, aligning with the criteria for band 5.0.

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

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