Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Academic Practice Accelerator · 2026-09-11
IELTS Writing Task 2 question
Smoking can cause serious illnesses and should be made illegal.
To what extent do you agree?
Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.
Student answer (Band 5.5)
The given topic brings up the issue of smoking and problems caused by it in our society.
Smoking is a major problem in all over the world there are only a few small countries who have tried to control its damages. Smoking is known to the root cause of major problem in a society, In instance smoking cause domestic problems, major cause in destruction of families, can cause addiction, cancer, heart failure, lung damage, arthritis, asthma. Smoking can lead the smoker to new form of drugs and people who are addicted to smoking are often disliked by the community. It can lead to question on a persons character and personality.
Government can take important measures to control smokers, government should ban harvesting of tobacco and can jam its global export, and increasing the price of cigarette that a normal person wouldn't be able to afford. Rehabilitation centres should be more common and affordable for common people, and should be properly funded by the government to provide proper treatment to addicts.
We can see hundreds of examples around us where smokers abuse their partners and cause violence. In my neighbourhood there was a guy who was addicted to smoking which lead him drugs and bad company his family often tried to send him to rhabila
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0
The response fails to meet the minimum word count requirement of 250 words, which significantly impacts the development of ideas. While you present a clear position that smoking should be illegal, the arguments are under-developed. The essay ends abruptly mid-sentence, leaving the final point incomplete. To improve, you must expand on your arguments with more detailed explanations and examples to ensure the task is fully addressed. The current length prevents a thorough exploration of the topic, resulting in a limited response that does not fully support the position taken.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The essay is organised into paragraphs, but the progression of ideas is hindered by the incomplete nature of the final paragraph. While there is an attempt to use cohesive devices like 'In instance' and 'In my neighbourhood', these are often used incorrectly or sound unnatural. The transition between the health impacts of smoking and the government's role is somewhat abrupt. To improve, focus on using a wider variety of linking words and ensure that each paragraph has a clear topic sentence that flows logically into the next.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The vocabulary is generally adequate for basic communication but lacks the range and precision required for higher bands. You rely on repetitive phrasing such as 'major problem' and 'smoking can cause'. There are also issues with word choice and collocation, such as 'jam its global export' and 'rhabila' (which appears to be an incomplete word). To reach a higher band, try to incorporate more academic vocabulary and precise collocations related to public health and policy, and ensure that all words are spelled correctly.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The essay contains a mix of simple and some complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors that occasionally impede clarity. Examples include 'Smoking is a major problem in all over the world' (incorrect preposition) and 'Smoking can lead the smoker to new form of drugs' (missing article). Punctuation is also inconsistent, particularly with comma splices. To improve, focus on subject-verb agreement, correct article usage, and ensuring that sentences are complete and punctuated correctly. Proofreading for basic errors will help improve your accuracy.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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