Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Academic Practice Accelerator · 2026-11-10

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

In many countries, people do not recycle their rubbish as much as they could.

Why do you think this is? What can be done to change this?

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

Student answer (Band 5.5)

Across the globe, it is a growing trend that people do not reuse their waste as much as they have to. In my opinion, there are several reasons for that, and we can take various steps to improve it, which I can discuss in the lateral paragraphs.

One of the main reasons is lack of awareness among people. Most of the common persons are not aware of the negative impact which it causes. They do not know how seriously these things impact their health in the future. One of the few things that we can do is raise awareness in people by organizing state-level campaigns. For example, the Pakistani government runs campaigns about it on a yearly basis.

The other thing we can do is to impose fines on violations and announce rewards for those who follow the law. For example, in Dubai, there is a law about recycling things that you have to pay a hefty fine for if you break them. And the same thing is imposed in European countries, where you will be rewarded by the government if you recycle things.

In conclusion to that, most of the people are not aware we have to guide them, and we have to impose sanctions on those who violate them and have to appreciate those who follow it

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

You address both questions by identifying limited awareness as a reason and proposing campaigns, fines, and rewards. The examples of Pakistan and Dubai also make the suggestions more concrete. However, the response is under the required 250 words, and the ideas remain only briefly explained: for instance, you mention health impacts but do not explain how poor recycling affects health or why this discourages recycling. The discussion also focuses mainly on solutions, while the reasons are limited to one general point. Develop the causes and explain how each proposed measure would change behaviour, using specific supporting detail, to address the task more fully.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, paragraphs presenting a cause and solutions, and a conclusion. Sequencing is generally easy to follow, and phrases such as “One of the main reasons” and “For example” help signal the relationship between ideas. However, the progression is somewhat mechanical, and the second body paragraph combines two separate measures without explaining their connection. Some references are unclear, particularly “these things,” “them,” and “it” in the conclusion. Use clearer nouns and organise each main idea with its explanation and example in a distinct, logically developed paragraph.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use enough topic-related vocabulary to communicate the main points, including “raise awareness,” “campaigns,” “impose fines,” and “rewards.” There are also attempts at more formal phrasing, such as “negative impact” and “violations.” However, several choices are unnatural or imprecise: “reuse their waste” does not accurately express recycling, “common persons” is not idiomatic, and “in the lateral paragraphs” is an unsuitable phrase for an essay. Repetition of “things” and “people” also limits precision. Choose vocabulary that fits the recycling topic and use natural collocations; this would make the argument clearer and more appropriately academic.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You use a mixture of simple sentences and some longer structures, including “there are several reasons for that, and we can take various steps to improve it.” Most of the meaning remains understandable, but some grammatical errors and awkward constructions reduce control. For example, “the negative impact which it causes” has an unclear reference, while “a hefty fine for if you break them” is not correctly structured. The final sentence also lacks clear grammatical links between its clauses. Practise building complex sentences with clear subjects and references, and check clause structure, agreement, and punctuation. More consistently accurate sentences would strengthen the response.

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