Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Summit Mastery · 2026-08-16

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

A huge number of students choose to study English independently on a self- study basis rather than attend a formal course. However, without the assistance of a teacher, students often find it difficult to manage their studies.

To what extent do you agree or disagree ?

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

Student answer (Band 5.5)

In this contemporary era, self-studies has become a topic of considerable debate. Many students believe that study English solely is more effective than other academic courses. On the other hand, students face challenges without a qualified mentor as handling the doubts. Although an independent study is more effective and free of cost, lack of moral support and professional guidance. This essay discuss both the viewpoints before presenting a valid perspective.

Commencing with the viewpoint of the multitude of people why they believe that a teacher plays an important role in individual's studies. The first and foremost reason is moral support, which is given by the mentor when a student feel demotivated and fear of failure. To unfold it, mentor not only helps in education but also give emotional support. Basically, a good teacher analysis the weakness of the person and provide guidance to overcome their weak point. For example, an individual works on their fluency yet the problem in their grammar, mentor helps them to focus on the main problem.

In addition, teachers provide adequate and correct knowledge about the topic. Face-to-face conversation with mentor assists to solve doubts easily and correctly. In other words, students can ask their doubt and difficulties from their mentor about studies, it may solve within a seconds without spending a lot a time. For instance, a student has a doubt in grammar and to ask from mentor is the best and easy way.

Admittedly, solely study has considered a much convenient and pocket-friendly. This is mainly because of the fact that technology advancement, this facilitate the free online classes and free AI chatbots. To illustrate, nowadays, students prefer to study online applications like youtube, this gives proper courses but in free of cost and AI chatbots like chatgpt which gives them guidance and helps them to understand their weakness.

To conclude, I believe that a professional and qualified tutor plays a vital role to manage the student's role. They keep their students motivated and well managed.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses the prompt and maintains a clear position throughout. You have identified both the benefits of self-study and the necessity of a teacher. However, the development of ideas is somewhat repetitive. For instance, the points regarding 'moral support' and 'solving doubts' are mentioned in both the second and third paragraphs. To reach a higher band, ensure that each paragraph introduces a distinct, well-supported argument rather than restating similar concepts. The conclusion is a bit abrupt and does not fully summarize the main points discussed in the body paragraphs, which limits the depth of your response.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, and there is a clear progression of ideas. You use some cohesive devices such as 'In addition', 'To illustrate', and 'To conclude' effectively. However, some transitions feel mechanical or slightly awkward, such as 'To unfold it' or 'Basically'. Additionally, the referencing is occasionally unclear; for example, in the phrase 'it may solve within a seconds', the pronoun 'it' does not have a clear antecedent. Improving the variety and natural flow of your linking words will help elevate the coherence of your writing.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

You have an adequate range of vocabulary to discuss the topic, including terms like 'contemporary era', 'qualified mentor', and 'technology advancement'. However, there are several instances of word-choice errors and awkward collocations, such as 'study English solely' (should be 'studying English independently') and 'solve within a seconds' (should be 'solved in seconds'). Some phrasing is repetitive, particularly the use of 'mentor' and 'doubt'. To improve, focus on using more precise academic collocations and ensure that your word forms are accurate in context.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The essay contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are frequent grammatical errors throughout the text. Examples include subject-verb agreement issues ('self-studies has', 'teacher analysis the weakness'), missing articles ('fear of failure' vs 'a fear of failure'), and incorrect preposition usage ('ask their doubt... from their mentor'). These errors are noticeable and occur consistently, though they do not prevent the reader from understanding your main points. Increasing your control over basic grammar and punctuation will significantly improve your score.

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

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