Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Academic Practice Accelerator · 2026-10-05

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)

In most of the countries, people do not pay attention to recycling their garbage as much as they should. In my opinion, people can never be responsible for anything until government or any high authority puts pressure on them. Also, I will discuss what things should be done to change this behavior of the people.

First of all, people do not have any sense of responsibility. They only care about the things that give them benefits. In today's world, everyone is chasing after their profit and wants to get everything in just a short time. Money and power are their weakness, and they could do anything for them. If anybody wants them to do work according to that person's will, he has to offer something in return, either power or money. But, for tasks like recycling garbage, nobody can give power in return. So, money is the best option for this. If they get money for recycling, they will definitely do it that way if you want.

There are some countries, like Japan and China, where different kinds of drums are available, on which different signs or words are written, so anybody can separate their rubbish and place it in the drum that is specially made for that kind of thing. This is another approach to encourage people to take part in that kind of activity. The government should install these types of drums instead of single disposal. If I talk about myself, I will definitely not care about recycling if I don't get any of these possibilities.

In conclusion, people don't put effort into recycling things that are available in their houses until they get benefit or any other easy option as compared to doing it themselves.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

The response addresses the two parts of the prompt, exploring reasons why people fail to recycle and suggesting solutions like financial incentives and infrastructure. However, the development of these ideas is uneven. The exploration of why people lack responsibility is somewhat repetitive, relying heavily on assertions about money and power rather than deeper societal or environmental analysis. Similarly, the solution regarding specially marked bins is relevant, but the overall presentation of ideas shows a tendency towards over-generalisation and limited support, preventing a more thorough exploration of the issues.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The essay presents a coherent overall arrangement with a clear attempt to structure the response into an introduction, body paragraphs addressing the prompt's two questions, and a brief conclusion. However, the progression of ideas is sometimes mechanical. Cohesive devices are used, but referencing can be slightly unclear, such as the pronoun shifts in the second paragraph when discussing human behavior. Paragraphing is present and generally appropriate, though the second body paragraph could be better integrated to maintain a smooth logical flow throughout the essay.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

The vocabulary used is adequate for the task, with simple and familiar words accurately deployed. The writer attempts some less common vocabulary, such as 'high authority' and 'infrastructure-related ideas like 'drums', but these attempts occasionally suffer from inaccurate word choice and unnatural collocation, such as referring to recycling bins as 'drums'. There are also minor awkward phrasings, though these spelling and lexical errors do not significantly impede communication. To reach a higher level, a wider and more precise range of topic-specific vocabulary is required.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The response demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, such as conditional structures in 'If they get money for recycling, they will definitely do it'. However, attempts at complex structures are sometimes accompanied by grammar and punctuation errors, including prepositional inconsistencies and awkward clause phrasing. While errors are noticeable, they rarely impede communication. A greater variety of error-free complex sentences and tighter control over articles and prepositions would be needed to push this score higher.

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

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