Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Summit Mastery · 2026-10-10

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)

It is widely believed that, a significant number of students would like to study English independently. On the other hand, in many cases they find it challenging to manage the studies without the guidance of instructor or by enroll in formal education. I strongly agree with this statement because nowadays students find self study more convenient due to the development in technology and offordability.

One of the main reasons to support this statement is that, students find independent learning more convenient because the advancement in technology, although some times they may face challenges to balance their studies due to the absence of instructor. As a result, they are able to study everywhere at any time with the help of technology without spending time in formal institutions. For instance, Student can learn English at home with the assistance of artificial intelligence at any time without the supervision of the instructor.

Furthermore, students believe that self study is more affordable than enroll in formal English course. Therefore, students are able to learn English without paying to any teacher or institute. For example they can study English free of cost on online platforms in their personal space without paying a single Penny.

To sum up, I strongly believe that study English independently is more convenient to students due to the utilization of technology under the supervision of artificial intelligence without any time constraints. Furthermore they can learn free of cost at any place on digital platforms without paying to any instructor or institutions although studying independently also have some challenges but it's advantages outweigh to its disadvantages.

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response5.5
Coherence and Cohesion5.5
Lexical Resource5.5
Grammatical Range and Accuracy5.5
Overall5.5

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

Your position is stated clearly: “I strongly agree,” and you give relevant reasons, including convenience, technology and affordability. The examples of using AI at home and free online platforms help illustrate these points. However, the response does not fully address the central concern in the prompt: why learners may struggle to manage their studies without a teacher. You briefly mention the “absence of instructor” and “some challenges,” but do not explain what those difficulties are or how they affect learners. The discussion therefore focuses more on the advantages of independent study than on the statement you are asked to evaluate. Develop the challenges and explain how they shape your level of agreement, while extending each main reason with specific detail.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure, with an introduction, two body paragraphs and a conclusion. “One of the main reasons” and “Furthermore” signal the development of supporting points, and the conclusion restates your position. However, progression is limited because both body paragraphs mainly repeat the benefits of independent study, while the difficulty of managing learning is not developed as a separate idea. Some linking is also mechanical, and the first body paragraph’s “although” clause makes the relationship between convenience and difficulty unclear. The conclusion repeats several phrases from earlier, such as “free of cost” and “without paying.” Organise the body around distinct reasons, use clearer links between claims and explanations, and avoid repeating the same point in the summary.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant vocabulary for the topic, including “independently,” “guidance,” “advancement in technology,” “affordable” and “supervision.” These choices make your main ideas understandable. However, the range is limited by repeated wording such as “study,” “students,” “without paying” and “at any time,” and some expressions are inaccurate or unnatural. For example, “offordability” is misspelled, “by enroll in formal education” is not an appropriate phrase, and “personal space” does not clearly convey the intended meaning of studying privately or at home. Aim for more precise collocations and check spelling and word forms. This would help you express the contrast between independent learning’s benefits and its possible difficulties more clearly.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and complex sentences, including a concession with “although” and a cause-and-effect structure beginning “As a result.” However, errors in sentence construction and grammatical forms are frequent enough to make some sentences awkward. For example, “a significant number of students would like” is preceded by an unnecessary comma, while “without the guidance of instructor” needs an article. The phrase “students find independent learning more convenient because the advancement in technology” lacks a complete grammatical connection, and “studying independently also have some challenges” has subject–verb disagreement. There are also problems with infinitive forms, as in “more affordable than enroll.” Practise articles, agreement and verb patterns, then proofread punctuation and sentence boundaries.

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.