Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Academic Practice Accelerator · 2026-09-29

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

We no longer need to have animals kept in zoos, so zoos should be closed.

Do you agree or disagree?

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

Student answer (Band 5.5)

It is argued that zoos are not required to keep animals and instead all zoos must shut down. This essay disagrees with the suggestion because zoo protects humans from man-eating animals and helps in conservation of endangered species.

There are many wildlife creatures who target humans as their prey. This is because humankind are not as quick or strong as other animals to protect themselves, which makes us easy target for man-eating mammals. In order to prevent such creatures from causing harm, they are often captured and kept captive inside zoos. Therefore, zoos are necessary to shelter man-eating animals as taking away their life to protect the human race can be morally wrong.

Many zoos are important in protecting the endangered animals. Researchers study the behaviour of these animals and experiment different methods to make them mate and increase their numbers. Zoo keepers take special care of these creatures by feeding them food to meet their dietary requirements. For instance,Tarangaro Zoo in Australia is famous for protecting life of upto more than 50 different reptiles and birds from distinction.

In conclusion, I strongly believe zoos are necessary to keep humans protected from man-eating creatures. Moreover, zoo plays crucial role in protecting the existance of endangered

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

The response clearly presents a position disagreeing with the closure of zoos, focusing on human protection and endangered species conservation. However, the essay is incomplete, stopping abruptly in the final sentence and failing to reach the minimum word count of 250 words, coming in at only 205 words. Because the task is under-length, the development of ideas is restricted, leading to some sweeping generalisations, such as the idea that man-eating animals are captured primarily to protect us from moral dilemmas regarding killing them. Furthermore, the final paragraph is cut off. Consequently, the task cannot be fully developed to Band 6 standards, resulting in a score of 5.0.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The essay displays basic overall organisation, featuring an introduction, two body paragraphs, and a truncated conclusion. Paragraphing is attempted appropriately, with each body paragraph focusing on a distinct main idea: human safety and animal conservation. However, cohesive devices are somewhat mechanical and repetitive, such as the transition 'Moreover' and structural repetition in topic sentences. Referencing is generally clear, but the lack of a finished concluding sentence impacts the overall progression and logical flow of the piece. Overall, the structural framework is acceptable for a mid-band score.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The student demonstrates an adequate vocabulary range to communicate simple and complex ideas relating to the topic, using words like 'conservation', 'endangered species', and 'dietary requirements'. However, there are noticeable lexical inaccuracies and awkward word choices, such as 'experiment different methods' instead of 'experiment with different methods', and 'protection of life of upto more than 50 different reptiles' which is unnatural. Additionally, there is a spelling error with 'existance' instead of 'existence', and a word choice error with 'distinction' instead of 'extinction'. These errors do not completely impede communication but prevent a higher score.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

The writer uses a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, incorporating relative clauses and conditional structures, such as 'In order to prevent such creatures from causing harm, they are often captured...'. There are, however, several grammatical errors throughout the text. For example, subject-verb agreement is flawed in 'humankind are not as quick', as 'humankind' is treated as singular or uncountable. Other minor errors include missing articles ('feeding them food' and 'Tarangaro Zoo'). Despite these errors, meaning is generally clear, and the sentences are comprehensible. The control of grammar aligns with a Band 6 level.

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

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.