Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-09-12

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)

Throughout their lifetime, everyone will has to go through hard times in order to becme mature, develop an unbreakable character. Therefore, facing these challenges with bravery and working hard to get through these situations can create a tough and successful person, however some people suggest that these situations should be accepted as their fate rather than pushing hard to break them.

Difficult times are a part of human life, sometimes they often occur in the form of a tough and unsatisfactory job, while sometimes things like family problems, financial difficulties or health-related problems. The fact is that, people often become lazy, often due to past challenges and a lack of result, disappointment take over them and they lose hope. Instead of thinking to get out of these challenges they get use to them, accept it as their fate and continue to live on.

Regradlessly, humans are the most superior beings and they have the ability to think, do everything and solve every problem, likewise working to get out of bad situations will ultimately result in peaceful life and successful career. In case of health problems, a person should start doing exersices or fix their diet along with advising younger ones to do these things as essential habits, money shortage can also be solve by doing extra work, starting some extra tasks beside regular jobs.

Similarly, a person can overcome every dilemmaby simply not giving up and trying harder, at last thi will create a better future for him and his oved ones.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The student addresses all parts of the task by discussing both views—accepting bad situations versus trying to improve them—and provides a clear personal opinion in the final sentence of the introduction and body paragraphs. For instance, the writer states that 'working to get out of bad situations will ultimately result in peaceful life and successful career'. Ideas are generally relevant, covering job dissatisfaction, financial struggles, and health issues. However, some ideas remain slightly under-developed and rely on over-generalisation, such as the broad claim that a shortage of money can be solved simply by 'doing extra work'. Furthermore, the conclusion is rather brief and underdeveloped. Consequently, the response fits well within the Band 6 descriptors for Task Achievement.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The response presents a coherent overall arrangement with a clear stance. Paragraphing is utilised, although the final paragraph consists of only a single short sentence. Cohesive devices are employed to link ideas, such as 'Therefore', 'Instead of', and 'Likewise'. However, referencing and cohesion are sometimes faulty or mechanical. For example, the transitional phrase 'Regradlessly' contains a spelling error and is awkwardly deployed, while sentences like 'In case of health problems, a person should start doing exersices or fix their diet along with advising younger ones to do these things...' are overly long and run-on, making the logical progression of ideas somewhat difficult to follow at times. These features align the text with a Band 6 score.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

The writer demonstrates an adequate vocabulary range for the task, successfully communicating personal views using terms such as 'unsatisfactory job', 'financial difficulties', and 'unbreakable character'. There are several attempts to use less common vocabulary, but these are frequently marred by word-choice, collocation, or spelling errors. Examples include 'becme' instead of become, 'Regradlessly' instead of Regardless, 'get use to them' instead of get used to them, 'exersices' instead of exercises, 'dilemmaby' instead of dilemma by, and 'oved' instead of loved. These inaccuracies show a limited control of word formation and spelling, although communication is generally not impeded. This corresponds directly to a Band 5.0 lexical profile.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating some ambition with structures like subordinate clauses introduced by 'In order to' and 'Instead of'. However, grammatical accuracy is notably weak. There are frequent basic errors, such as subject-verb agreement failures ('everyone will has to go', 'disappointment take over them'), run-on sentences with comma splices ('...develop an unbreakable character. Therefore, facing these challenges...', '...solve every problem, likewise working...'), and missing articles ('result in peaceful life'). These recurring errors can cause occasional difficulty for the reader and prevent the text from achieving a higher band, placing it firmly at Band 5.0.

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

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