Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-10-01

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)

Embracing an unfavourable circumstance, such as an unsatisfactory job or insufficient money, is best, as some people believe. The rest of them think that trying to improve such circumstances is better than accepting them. However, I believe that accepting or trying to improve such situations differs from person to person.

Contextual factors have a significant influence on overcoming such situations. Many financially disadvantaged people choose to accept poverty to meet their basic needs and somehow manage to survive. They lack opportunities to find alternatives and grow in a positive environment. Sometimes, they are the worst victim of the situation. Due to the fact that they cannot help embracing it. On the other hand, many people try their best to improve the existing situation they live in. Because they have the support to avoid such situation. They may have emotional support from their families and friends, which encourages them to dream big. They may be mentally strong enough to cope with all odds.

I believe that people should strike a balance between accepting and improving bad situations. We may accept bad situations first and then learn from the worst situations to improve our future.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

The response addresses the prompt only partially and fails to meet the length requirement, coming in significantly under the 250-word minimum at 193 words. While the introduction acknowledges both views and the conclusion attempts a personal opinion, the ideas remain limited and under-developed. For example, the arguments regarding financially disadvantaged people choosing to accept poverty lack sufficient support or detailed examples. Furthermore, the position is somewhat unclear and shifts towards a synthesis rather than maintaining a distinct perspective throughout. To reach higher bands, the writer must expand the response to meet the minimum word count and fully develop each viewpoint with more extensive explanations and relevant examples.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

There is some organisation evident in the essay, with paragraphs used to separate different ideas, but there is no clear overall progression of argument. Cohesive devices are sometimes inaccurate, repetitive, or mechanically applied, such as the abrupt transitions using 'Because' and 'Due to the fact that they cannot help embracing it' starting new sentences incorrectly. Referencing is also occasionally unclear, making the flow between sentences disjointed. To improve, the writer needs to ensure logical links between ideas are smoother and more varied, and that paragraphing is used to guide the reader through a well-structured progression of arguments.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The vocabulary used is limited but minimally adequate for the task. The writer attempts some less common items such as 'unfavourable circumstance', 'financially disadvantaged', and 'contextual factors', but there are noticeable errors in word choice and collocation, such as referring to people as the 'worst victim of the situation' or writing 'avoid such situation' instead of 'situations'. While these errors do not completely impede communication, they restrict the lexical score. To achieve a higher band, the student should expand their vocabulary range and use less common lexical items with greater precision and stylistic awareness.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The writer uses a limited range of sentence structures, relying mostly on simple and basic complex forms. Attempts at complex sentences are often faulty, leading to frequent grammatical errors that can cause difficulty for the reader. For instance, fragment sentences are used improperly, such as starting a sentence with 'Because they have the support to avoid such situation.' There are also issues with punctuation and article usage across the text. To improve grammatical performance, the writer needs to increase the variety of error-free complex structures and pay closer attention to punctuation rules and clause connections.

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