Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-08-22

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Some people say that the main environmental problem of our time is the loss of particular species of plants and animals. Others say that there are more important environmental problems.

Discuss both these views and give your own opinion.

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

Student answer (Band 5.5)

Many argue that extinction of some specific trees and animals can harm the environment, because reduction of species can result in environmental pollution by increasing CO2 in the nature. However, I believe there are other causes that harm environment, for example water pollution contributing in rising the water level in the sea.

Animal and plant varieties are essential in nature as they all play different roles in keeping the environment clean. But if animals and trees go extinct the nature witness imbalance. A classic example would be, in recent years the number of tigers in Sundarban forest have decreased, as a result the animals like deer and other vegetarian animals that were consumed by tigers now increased significantly. By the increment of these animals, the forest is rapidly losing the number of plants which results in more carbon emission in the nature causing environmental pollution because trees reduce CO2.

In contrast, I think there are other causes of environmental problems. Due to increasing temperature the ice in the north pole is melting towards the sea causing the water level to rise. Additionally, trash and dirty fuel that are thrown into the sea by ships or individuals are pilling up causing water pollution as well. All these reasons harms the environment and risks few country's landscapes. For instance, scientists recently studied that half of Bangladesh will be drown into the ocean by the end of 2050. If water pollution and sea level rising is drowning lands, that means its a massive risk for the other countries that are close to the ocean as well.

In conclusion, it is obvious that reduction of various tree species and animals are harmful for the environment but I think that water pollution and water level rising are more serious, as many counties can go under the sea in the near future.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses both sides of the argument and provides a clear personal opinion. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited. While you mention the loss of species and water pollution, the explanation of how these issues compare in terms of severity is a bit superficial. For instance, the link between tiger population decline and carbon emissions is a creative argument, but it lacks scientific precision. To reach a higher band, ensure that your arguments are fully extended with more logical depth and clearer connections to the broader environmental context. You have successfully covered all parts of the prompt, but the supporting evidence could be more robust.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is logically organized into paragraphs, each with a clear focus. You use some cohesive devices, such as 'However', 'In contrast', and 'In conclusion', to signal transitions between ideas. However, some connections feel a bit mechanical, and the flow between sentences could be smoother. For example, the transition between the tiger example and the conclusion of that paragraph is slightly abrupt. Additionally, some referencing is a bit unclear, such as 'All these reasons harms the environment', where the plural subject does not agree with the verb. Improving the variety and naturalness of your linking words will help elevate your score.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'extinction', 'imbalance', and 'environmental pollution'. However, there are instances of imprecise word choice and collocation errors, such as 'nature witness imbalance' (should be 'nature witnesses an imbalance') and 'vegetarian animals' (should be 'herbivores'). You also use 'pilling up' (should be 'piling up') and 'drown into the ocean' (should be 'drowned by the ocean'). To improve, focus on learning collocations and more precise academic terminology to express your ideas with greater accuracy and sophistication.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors that occasionally distract the reader. Common issues include subject-verb agreement ('number of tigers... have decreased' should be 'has decreased'), article usage ('in the nature' should be 'in nature'), and prepositional errors ('contributing in rising' should be 'contributing to the rise of'). While these errors do not prevent the reader from understanding your message, they occur frequently enough to limit your score. Focus on proofreading for basic agreement and ensuring that complex sentence structures are punctuated correctly.

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

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