Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-09-07

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

The most important aim of science should be to improve people’s lives. To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement? Give reasons for your answers and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

 

Student answer (Band 5.5)

It is often argued that the main goal of science should be to do work for the betterment of humanity. I strongly agree with this statement because it will enhance people's lives. This essay will discuss a few reasons to clarify my position.

The primary reason why I am in favor of this statement is that, when new research takes place to benefit individuals. Firstly, it would bring numerous advantages as advanced diagnostic methods such as MRI, CT scan, these tools help to diagnose diseases earlier which help patients to get desired treatment. Additionally, with the advancement of technology like social media, it becomes easy for all to get information about anything whether it is related to the studies, business, and domestic activities. Social media always provides substantial options. For instance, now due to advanced clinical practice cancer is possible to treat.

However, science is also promoting astronomical studies which is somehow beneficial for the society and plays an indispensable role to broadcast the weather. Climate forecasts help residents to be ready for upcoming weather threats. Nevertheless, some proponents believe that it is a wastage of money to explore sky, in their view it will be more beneficial to allocate money to invent more advanced technologies which will help individuals to get better treatment. For instance, as technology revolutions provides incredible ways to give best treatment of severe diseases. Nonetheless, still a few diseases are still untreated like GBS, Leukemia. Science should investigate to treat these life-threatening conditions.

In conclusion, science is already working for ways to benefit humanity. It is suggested to focus entirely on conducting investigations for humanity instead of studying weather, wildlife and so on

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

The response addresses the prompt and maintains a clear position throughout. However, the development of ideas is somewhat uneven. While the medical examples are relevant, the transition to astronomical studies feels slightly disconnected from the main argument. The conclusion introduces a new, somewhat restrictive suggestion that science should 'entirely' focus on humanity, which borders on over-generalisation. To reach a higher band, ensure that each supporting point is fully explained and directly linked back to the core argument of why science's primary aim should be the improvement of human life.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organised into logical paragraphs, and there is a clear progression of ideas. Cohesive devices are used, such as 'Firstly', 'Additionally', and 'However', but some transitions are mechanical or slightly awkward, such as 'Nevertheless, still a few diseases are still untreated'. Referencing is generally clear, though the flow between the second and third paragraphs could be smoother. The paragraphing is appropriate, but the internal structure of the paragraphs would benefit from more sophisticated linking to improve the overall flow of the argument.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, allowing the writer to express their ideas clearly. There are attempts to use topic-specific vocabulary like 'diagnostic methods', 'astronomical studies', and 'indispensable role'. However, the range is somewhat limited, and there are instances of repetitive or slightly imprecise word choices, such as 'do work for the betterment' or 'it becomes easy for all to get information'. More precise collocations and a wider variety of academic vocabulary would enhance the quality of the response.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are several grammatical errors, such as 'when new research takes place to benefit individuals' (a sentence fragment), 'as technology revolutions provides' (subject-verb agreement error), and 'it will be more beneficial to allocate money to invent' (slightly awkward phrasing). While these errors do not impede communication, they occur frequently enough to prevent a higher score. Increasing the variety of complex structures and ensuring better control over subject-verb agreement and punctuation would improve the score.

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

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