Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Momentum Workout · 2026-08-03

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

In many parts of the world girls and boys are educated together in co-educational or mixed schools. Some people think that girls and boys benefit from being educated separately in single-sex schools. To what extent do you agree with this view?

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge and experience. Write at least 250 words.

Student answer (Band 5.5)

The question of whether students should study in co-education or single-sex schools is a highly debatable topic among people nowadays. Some argue that girls and boys get more benefits from being educated separately in separate gender schools while other contend that co-education is more beneficial for them. I am inclined to believe that girls and boys learn more in mixed schools because of many reasons and examples which I'll explain in the essay.

The proponents of the first view say that girls and boys should study in single-sex schools. This is attributed to fear of building unhealthy relationships between girls and boys which affects their mental and physical health. Consequently, it has a detrimental role on their studies and learning. This conservative thinking is more common in rural areas. The recent data shows that the increasing rate of inappropriate relationship between students studying in co-education.

The opponents believe that co-education is more beneficial for the students. The rationale behind it is building self confidence in the students and boosting their self esteem. For instance, more co-education students go to international youth public speaking competitions and win them. This results in better public speaking skills.

Another significant advantage is having better communication skills with opposite gender. The prime example of this can be a girl faces more problems while interacting with boys during group assignments and projects in high school and university, if she studied in single-sex school before. Which ultimately affects her grades. Thus, for pursuing higher studies from a good institute, it is significant for students to get early education in co-education.

Thus, in the light of above arguments, I conclude that co-education benefits students more as compared to separate schools for genders. Although, there are certain drawbacks of this such as inappropriate relationships. But they can be overcome by an all-inclusive approach by the schools. An integrated approach is required, such as teaching communication skills and how to interact with opposite gender at early age, which can result in overcoming the rising issues.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses the prompt and maintains a clear position throughout. The arguments are relevant, particularly the focus on communication skills and confidence. However, the development is somewhat uneven. The point regarding 'inappropriate relationships' in the second paragraph is introduced but lacks sufficient explanation or evidence, remaining a general assertion. The example regarding public speaking is a good attempt at support, but it could be more specific to demonstrate a deeper understanding. To reach a higher band, ensure that every point raised is fully explored with concrete reasoning or illustrative examples rather than relying on brief, generalized statements.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, each with a clear central topic. There is a progression of ideas from the introduction to the conclusion. However, the use of cohesive devices is sometimes mechanical or slightly awkward. For instance, the transition 'Which ultimately affects her grades' is a sentence fragment that disrupts the flow. Additionally, some linking phrases are repetitive or used in a way that feels forced. While the essay is easy to follow, the management of cohesion needs to be more sophisticated and varied to achieve a higher score.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary used is generally adequate for the task, allowing the writer to convey their meaning clearly. There are attempts to use topic-specific vocabulary such as 'co-educational', 'proponents', 'rationale', and 'all-inclusive approach'. However, there are instances of imprecise word choice, such as 'separate gender schools' instead of 'single-sex schools' and 'international youth public speaking competitions' which feels slightly clunky. The range is sufficient to communicate, but it lacks the precision and natural collocation required for higher bands. Expanding the range of academic collocations would significantly improve the quality of the writing.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The essay demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are frequent grammatical errors, such as 'the increasing rate of inappropriate relationship' (should be plural) and 'in the light of above arguments' (missing 'the'). There are also issues with sentence fragments, such as the one starting with 'Which ultimately affects...'. Punctuation is generally functional, but the control over complex structures is inconsistent. To improve, focus on ensuring subject-verb agreement and avoiding sentence fragments by properly connecting dependent clauses to main clauses.

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