Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Academic Practice Accelerator · 2026-10-28

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)

Several countries around the world still do not recycle their trash as they are supposed to do. The main reason of that may caused by a lack of knoweledge, many individuals are not aware enough of the importance of recycling neither the consequences. In my opinion, government most take the first responsabilities to sensibilize its citezens by adding a module about the environment.

Recycling is considered as something new and many people think that it is not that important. Indeed, human beings acts purely by instict and by learning. This practice is not inner, this most be taught, understood and then practible. For that reason, people do not possess enough or the right information of recycling because they have never been teaching. In school, student rarely hear about protecting the environment, how to adopt the right habit to reduce carbon footprint, how to reduce the quantity of waste; furthermore, they did not know the consequences of their act in their environment. As a result, we cannot expect them to recycle their rubbish or just reducing it by changing their habit of consommation. As for instance, in my country the only module about environment is about life sciences, and yet we didi not learn importance or the consequences but just the photosynthesis and geology. Consequences, in my country the word "recycle" is quite inexistant beacue it is unknown by the majority of population.

For that reason, the government should be the first stakeholders of taking the responsibilities of informing its citezens from young age to oler. Indeed, if the practice or the thinking of carring about the environment is wanted to become like a second nature, the teaching must begin from a very young age. Government should encourage the media by diffusing the importance of recycling and its consequences to aware both children and adult. In addition, by inserting the major of environment commencing in primary school to developp the thought of being responsible through the nature. In other word, the action of recycling and all other practice related to the environment need to be by instict and purely natural. For example, when we throw our trash into a trash can, the act is natural, we do not spend uch time to thinking about it because it was sipmly natural. In addition of that, why not adopting the habit of trieing the rubbish instead of throwing all in the same trash can.

In conclusion, many individuals do not have the knowledge or have not developped the habit of the importance of protecting the environment so they still acting inconsciously by mixing all their trash. To change that, the habit need to be adopt from the young age so it becomes natural, and for that the governement play an important role of encrougaging its population and by introducing environment course in education system.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You address both parts of the question: you identify limited awareness and education as a reason for low recycling, then propose school lessons and media campaigns. Your position—that government should lead public education—is clear and relevant. The personal example about environmental teaching in your country helps illustrate the cause, and the suggestion to sort rubbish offers a practical action. However, the response focuses almost entirely on lack of knowledge; other possible barriers, such as inconvenient collection systems or limited facilities, are not considered. Some proposed actions also need fuller explanation: for example, explain how media campaigns would change everyday behaviour, or how schools could teach practical recycling. This leaves some ideas less developed than others, despite covering the task overall.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a clear overall structure: an introduction, a paragraph explaining the cause, a paragraph proposing solutions, and a conclusion. The progression from education as the problem to education as the remedy is easy to follow. You also use linking expressions such as “For that reason,” “As a result,” and “In addition.” At times, however, these links are repetitive or do not accurately show the relationship between ideas. “Consequences, in my country…” is an unclear transition, and “In addition of that” interrupts the flow. Some sentences contain several related points without clear separation, while the conclusion repeats the central idea rather than drawing the main points together. Use more precise transitions and make each paragraph’s sequence of claims and examples clearer.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant topic vocabulary, including “recycle,” “carbon footprint,” “environment,” and “consequences,” and you attempt more specific expressions such as “second nature” and “stakeholders.” This gives you enough vocabulary to communicate the main argument. However, spelling and word-choice errors are noticeable and sometimes make the reader pause: “knoweledge,” “citezens,” “inexistant,” and “consommation” are examples. Several combinations are also unnatural, such as “take the first responsibilities,” “diffusing the importance,” and “the major of environment.” Some words are repeated frequently, particularly “habit,” “natural,” and “importance.” Aim to learn accurate collocations alongside new vocabulary, and proofread spelling and word forms so your ideas sound more precise and fluent.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and complex sentences, including cause-and-effect structures and conditional phrasing, as in “if the practice…is wanted to become like a second nature.” This shows an effort to vary sentence forms. However, control is inconsistent, and errors in verb forms, agreement, articles, and sentence construction occur across the response. For example, “The main reason…may caused” needs a correctly formed verb, while “human beings acts” has a subject–verb agreement error. “They have never been teaching” also uses an incorrect passive form. Some long sentences combine several clauses in ways that make the relationships difficult to follow. Practise building accurate complex sentences, checking each clause for a clear subject and correctly formed verb, and use punctuation to separate complete ideas.

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