Band 4.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 4.0 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-10-05

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 4.0)

Some people believes that the acceptance is the best option during bad situatons, rather than an unsatisfactory job or shortage of money. But some people arguing that is better option to improve such situations. I agree with these opinions.

To begin, acceptance is most necessary habit during bad situatios in life. If you accept your mistakes than you improve your situation of life. And people believe that is best. Disscusing with other can help to solving your problem and improve their life situations. For example, last two years ago my friend suffering bad situation unasatisfactory job and shortage of money. They discuss with me, and i suggests that to improve their working skills.

Unsatisfactory job creating more bad situation for you , but if you improve your working skills , and keeps hardwork than you change your life.

On the other hands, i agree with these arguments, because people arguing is better to try and improve such situations.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 3.5

First, it must be noted that the length requirement of a minimum of 250 words is not met, as the response contains only 150 words, with 8 words copied directly from the prompt not counted. Regarding task fulfillment, the response addresses the prompt only partially. It attempts to discuss both views regarding whether to accept or improve bad situations and briefly touches upon a personal opinion, but the ideas remain very limited and under-developed. For instance, the notion that 'acceptance is most necessary habit' is stated without adequate extension or support, and the reasoning jumps abruptly between general statements and a brief personal example about a friend. Furthermore, the position is not always clear throughout the text, as the student paradoxically states agreement with opposing viewpoints without fully clarifying their stance. To reach a higher band, the writer must expand the response to meet the minimum word count and develop each main idea with clear explanations and relevant examples.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 3.5

The response shows some basic organisation with paragraph breaks, but there is no clear overall progression of ideas from start to finish. The logical flow is frequently disrupted by abrupt shifts in topic and repetitive sentence structures. While basic cohesive devices are attempted, such as 'To begin' and 'For example', referencing is often unclear, leaving the reader confused about who is being referred to, as seen in phrases like 'They discuss with me'. Paragraphing is used, but the paragraphs are underdeveloped and fail to structure the arguments logically. In addition, the incomplete concluding paragraph ('On the other hands, i agree with these arguments, because people arguing is better to try and improve such situations.') breaks off abruptly without bringing the essay to a cohesive close. To improve coherence and cohesion, the writer needs to ensure a logical sequence of thoughts, use cohesive devices more accurately, and develop each paragraph fully with clear thematic progression.

Lexical Resource: Band 4.5

The vocabulary used is basic and repetitive, reflecting a limited range that is only minimally adequate for the task. The writer relies heavily on simple terms and repeats key words such as 'situation', 'job', and 'improve' frequently throughout the short text. There are also noticeable lexical errors and awkward word choices, such as 'unasatisfactory' (spelling error) and 'keeps hardwork' (incorrect collocation and word form). Other instances like 'most necessary habit' demonstrate a lack of precision in vocabulary. While these errors do not completely obscure the intended meaning, they cause some difficulty for the reader and prevent the response from achieving a higher score. To improve lexical resource, the student should incorporate a wider variety of less common vocabulary, pay closer attention to word formation and spelling, and practice natural collocations appropriate for academic writing.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 4.5

The grammatical range is very limited, relying predominantly on simple sentence structures, while attempts at more complex sentences are frequently faulty. There are persistent errors in basic grammar, including subject-verb agreement ('Some people believes', 'people arguing is better'), missing articles ('is better option', 'during bad situatons'), incorrect prepositions, and pronoun confusion. Punctuation and word form errors are also present, such as in the phrase 'If you accept your mistakes than you improve your situation of life.' Frequent errors in grammar and punctuation cause noticeable difficulty for the reader. To move up to a higher band, the writer needs to demonstrate a greater variety of complex sentence structures and improve grammatical accuracy across basic and complex forms, paying close attention to verb tenses, article usage, and subject-verb agreement.

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

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