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)

EVERYONE HAVE DIFFERENT SITUATION AND CHALLENGES IN THIER OWN LIFE. FEW INDIVIDUAL THINKS THAT PEOPLE SHOULD ACCEPT THEIR CURRENT SITUATION. WHILE OTHER ARGUE THAT WE SHOULD TRY TO IMPROVE OUR CURRENT LIFESTYLE. IN MY OPINION, WE SHOULD ALWAYS WORK HARD TO INHANCE OUR CURRENT SITUATIONS.

PEOPLE ACCEPT THEIR CURRENT CONDITION AND THERE MIGHT BE DUE TO THESE REASONS. FIRST, THEY DO NOT HAVE A FINANCIAL BACKUP. A STRONG FINANCE SUPPORT MAY REQUIRED TO START ANY BUSINESS OR NEW INITIATIVE TO IMPORVE THEIR BAD SITUATION. SECONDLY, THEY MAY LACK IN EDUCATION OR KNOWLEDGE ABOUT REAL LIFE SITUATION. FOR EXAMPLE, SOME INDIVIDUALS DO NOT KNOW TO USE INTERNET AND COMPUTER WHICH RESTRICT THEM FROM EARNING A DECENT PAYOUT.

MEANWHILE, FEW PEOPLE ALWAYS POSSES A POSITIVE ATTITUDE IN THEIR LIFE. THEY ARE ALWAYS MOTIVATED TOWARDS IMPROVING THEIR CURRENT LIFESTYLE. A BETTER LIFESTYLE HELPS TO BUILD A GOOD SOCIAL IMAGE IN SOCIETY. WHICH HELP THEM FURTHER IN THEIR LIFE BY GETTING MULTIPLE OPPORTUNITES IN JOBS OR BUSINESS. IT ALSO HLEPS TO BUILD RELATIONS. ANOTHER ADVANTAGE WILL BE FOR THEIR UPCOMING GENERATION AND THEIR ELDER PARENTS TO SUPPORT THEM IN THEIR OLD AGE.

IN MY VIEW, PEOPLE SHOULD ALWAYS CARRY A POSITIVE GRATITUDE IN THEIR LIFE TO IMPROVE THEIR SITUATION IN EVERY STAGE OF THIER LIFE. AS THERE ARE MULTIPLE LIVE EXAMPLE THAT PEOPLE WORK HARDED TO CAME OUT FROM THEIR POOR LIFE STYLE AND WE HAVE BEEING SEEING THOSE EXAMPLES SINCE YEARES.

TO CONCLUDE THIS, A POSTIVE ATTITUDE TOWARDS IMPROVING LIFE WILL BENEFITS NOT ONLY THEIR PERSONAL LIFE BUT IT HELPS TO BUILD A STRONG AND DEVELOPED SOCIETY.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response successfully addresses all parts of the prompt by discussing both views—accepting a bad situation versus trying to improve it—and providing a clear personal opinion. The writer presents relevant reasons for accepting a bad situation, such as financial constraints and lack of education, and explores the advantages of striving for improvement, including social image and family support. However, the development of ideas remains somewhat superficial and lacks depth. For instance, the discussion on financial backups and computer skills is valid but remains brief and under-developed. Nevertheless, a clear position is maintained throughout the essay. This performance aligns well with the Band 6 descriptors, as all parts of the task are addressed and a relevant position is presented, though ideas could be extended further.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0

The essay demonstrates an overall logical arrangement with a clear attempt to structure the response into introduction, body paragraphs, and conclusion. Paragraphing is utilised to separate distinct ideas, such as reasons for acceptance versus reasons for improvement. However, coherence is occasionally hindered by faulty or mechanical cohesive devices and referencing issues. For example, the sentence fragment 'WHICH HELP THEM FURTHER...' incorrectly links a relative clause to a preceding full stop. Furthermore, transition markers between paragraphs are basic, and some ideas lack smooth logical progression. These features are characteristic of Band 5, where there is some organisation and logical grouping of ideas, but cohesion overall is somewhat inaccurate and mechanical.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully communicating everyday concepts related to lifestyle, jobs, and financial challenges (e.g., 'financial backup', 'social image', 'positive attitude'). However, there are frequent spelling and word choice errors that impede precision, such as 'INHANCE' instead of enhance, 'IMPORVE' instead of improve, 'HLEPS' instead of helps, and 'THIER' instead of their. The writer attempts less common vocabulary like 'gratitude' (used incorrectly in place of attitude) and 'opportunity', but these attempts are marred by inaccurate collocations and spelling inaccuracies. This performance fits comfortably within the Band 5 descriptor, where the lexical resource is limited yet minimally adequate, but noticeable errors cause some difficulty for the reader.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, but grammatical accuracy is a significant weak point throughout the response. There are numerous basic grammatical and punctuation errors, such as 'EVERYONE HAVE DIFFERENT SITUATION' (subject-verb agreement and singular/plural noun error), 'DO NOT KNOW TO USE' (missing question word), and 'LIVE EXAMPLE THAT PEOPLE WORK HARDED TO CAME OUT' (tense and morphology errors). Additionally, sentences are written entirely in uppercase, which disregards standard punctuation and capitalization conventions. The range of structures is limited, and attempts at complex sentences frequently contain errors that cause difficulty for the reader. This directly reflects the Band 5 descriptor for grammatical range and accuracy.

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

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