Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · IELTS Academic Practice Accelerator · 2026-11-03

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 5.0)

Smoking causes severe harm to the human body and thus should be banned. I completely agree with this view as smoking leads to serious sicknesses which can eventually cause death.

While many would argue deeming smoking illegal as an "unlawful act", to some extent, they would not be wrong. People have been smoking for centuries. From rulers to peasants, everyone has lit a ciggarette. Restaurants gives employees smoke breaks, many establishments have a designated place for smoking. Suddenly making smoking illegal would make the people furious.

On the other hand, smoking leads to serious internal injuries. Smoking is the main cause cancer as smoking creates tar in one's lungs which sowly builds as he/she continues smoking eventually leading to lung cancer, gum cancer,etc. Smoking is not only bad for the smoker but also the people around him. For example, studies from Delhi researchers show that a non-smoking person living in Delhi approximately inhales 3 ciggarrette worth of second hand smoke just by living his day-to-day life. Smoking is very addictive as well. Millions of peeople die every year because of smoking. Therefore, smoking should be made illegal.

In conclusion, people have been smoking for centuries without knowing the real consequencies of it.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

You state a clear position in the opening—“I completely agree”—and give relevant reasons, including serious illness, addiction and harm to people exposed to second-hand smoke. However, the response only partially develops the task. The point that people may be angry if smoking becomes illegal is introduced but not examined, and the conclusion shifts to saying people smoked “without knowing” the consequences rather than reinforcing why prohibition is justified. The Delhi example is relevant, but its source and significance are not explained. The response also falls short of the required minimum length, leaving limited space to develop the argument. Extend each main reason with explanation and a specific, credible example, and address the practical case for and against a ban.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, two body paragraphs presenting contrasting considerations, and a conclusion. Linking phrases such as “On the other hand,” “For example,” and “Therefore” help signal relationships between ideas. However, progression is limited: the first body paragraph raises public resistance to a ban but does not connect this point clearly to the writer’s position, while the conclusion introduces a different emphasis instead of drawing the argument together. Several ideas are crowded into the second body paragraph, and the repeated use of “smoking” makes the flow feel repetitive. Organise the essay around a clear sequence of claims, explanations and examples, and use referencing or varied transitions to show how each point supports your overall view.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use enough topic-related vocabulary to communicate the main argument, including “serious illnesses,” “designated place,” “addictive,” and “second hand smoke.” Some choices are imprecise or unnatural, however, such as “serious internal injuries” for health damage and “sicknesses” for diseases. Spelling errors—including “ciggarette,” “ciggarrette,” “sowly,” “peeople,” and “consequencies”—are noticeable and can distract the reader. There is also repetition of “smoking” and “serious,” which limits the range. Build a more accurate set of health and policy terms, check spelling carefully, and vary repeated words where the meaning allows. For example, use “illnesses” or “diseases” rather than “sicknesses,” and “health damage” rather than “internal injuries.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt some longer sentences, including the explanation of how smoking may lead to cancer, and use basic sentence forms to communicate your position. However, the range is limited, and complex sentences are often faulty. For example, “Smoking is the main cause cancer” is missing a grammatical element, while “Restaurants gives employees smoke breaks” has a subject–verb agreement error. The sentence beginning “While many would argue deeming smoking illegal…” is difficult to follow because its clause structure is incomplete or unclear. There are also problems with articles and punctuation, as in “gum cancer,etc.” These errors recur and sometimes make the reader pause. Practise building accurate complex sentences, checking agreement and articles, and separating long explanations into clear clauses.

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

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