Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-11-09

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Some people believe that it is best to accept a bad situation, such as an unsatisfactory job or shortage of money. Others argue that it is better to try and improve such situations.

Discuss both these views and give your own opinion.

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

Student answer (Band 5.5)

Certain people think that it is better to accept an unfortunate situation like unsatisfactory job or shortage of money. While others believe that it is best to try and improve such situations. From my opinion, situations should be improved by working hard and by changing job according to mind satisfaction because being relaxed and satisfied is significant.

By working hard shortage of money could overcome because if someone have a good job then his working hours would more. Similarly, if somebody is not satisfied with his job then then he should change his job according to his mind satisfaction and pursue his career in a well mannered way. For instance, my cousin was furious about his job as a business employee, because he had low pay and high workload. Then he applied in another company and now he is working as a business manager and now he is comfortable due to the less working hours and high salary.

From the perspective of some individuals that the bad situation should be accepted is a very disappointed believe by people because we are born with independence and also called as a best creature by our God. So to carry on with the bad situation is a bad habit of some lazy persons who do not want to make progress in their life with hardworking instead they want any shortcut for success. To exemplify, my friend has a business of clothes, but he faced loss in business many times but instead to reduce his own comfort zone he always blamed to his fortune.

To conclude, some individuals believe to accept bad situation like irrelevant job or low money while others having a courage to improve such a situations. From my point to think situations can be improved by working hard and replacing some choices.

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response5.5
Coherence and Cohesion5.5
Lexical Resource5.5
Grammatical Range and Accuracy5.0
Overall5.5

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You address both views and state a clear preference for improving difficult circumstances, especially through hard work or changing jobs. The examples about your cousin and friend are relevant and help illustrate the discussion. However, the argument is uneven: the benefits of trying to improve a situation are explained more concretely than the reasons someone might accept it. The claim that acceptance reflects laziness, for example, does not consider circumstances such as limited opportunities, family responsibilities, or a temporary need for stability. Your position is present, but the conclusion mostly repeats it rather than drawing the discussion together. Develop both sides more evenly and explain the reasoning behind each example to make the response more complete.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure, with an introduction, separate body paragraphs and a conclusion. The examples are placed alongside the views they support, and connectors such as “For instance,” “Similarly,” and “To conclude” help signal relationships between ideas. However, progression within paragraphs is sometimes difficult to follow: the first body paragraph moves from overcoming financial problems to changing jobs without clearly distinguishing these points. Some linking is repetitive or mechanical, and references such as “such a situations” are unclear. The conclusion also restates the two positions rather than synthesising the discussion. Use clearer topic sentences, organise one main idea at a time, and make links between claims and examples more explicit.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use enough vocabulary to discuss employment, finances and personal choices, including phrases such as “low pay,” “high workload,” “career,” and “make progress.” There are also attempts at less common expressions, but several are inaccurate or unnatural and sometimes make the intended meaning harder to understand. For example, “mind satisfaction,” “a very disappointed believe,” and “reduce his own comfort zone” do not express the ideas naturally; “fortune” is also imprecise in the context of business losses. Repeated use of “bad situation” and “improve” limits variety. Choose more precise collocations and check whether phrases sound natural in context, while retaining the clear, relevant vocabulary you already use.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and complex sentences, including conditional structures such as “if someone have a good job” and clauses introduced by “because” and “while.” This shows an effort to vary sentence forms, but control is inconsistent, and errors occur frequently enough to affect clarity. Examples include “if someone have” instead of “if someone has,” “his working hours would more,” and “he applied in another company.” Articles and plurals are also problematic in phrases such as “unsatisfactory job” and “bad situation.” Some sentences become difficult to follow because several ideas are joined without secure grammatical structure. Practise accurate subject–verb agreement, articles, verb patterns and complete conditional clauses, then proofread each sentence for a clear subject and verb.

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