Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-09-14
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)
It is stated that loss of plants and animal specific breeds are major concern in environmental sector while some people think differently. I believe that there are other major issues regarding environment that requires spotlight and solution as well.
One of the reasons that species of plants and animals' extinction is concerning is that people are getting deprived of many precious animals and plants hence creating less diversity in environment biodiversity. For example, Kakapo was very precious and beautiful bird though after many regulations for their preservation they got extinct from the environment biodiversity depriving people of their benefits. Betony, the plant species that was used for headaches and nervous system problem in medical now vanished due to environmental issue.
Other environmental issues that require highlight are management of pollution that is causing ozone depletion, many of the skin and breathing problem are on rise due to the bad air quality hence resulting in poor living conditions of humans. There are many countries who don't even have proper funding to solve such problems. For example, the number of skin cancer patients are emerging in Africa due to the strong radiations from the son hence, endangering many lives. If remained unnoticed there will be multiple health hazards that humans are going to encounter due to unmanaged environmental problems.
In conclusion, the loss of plants and animal species are of the concern but there are also many multiple environmental issues regarding pollution that needs management. Otherwise, they are going to impose huge threat on human quality of life by introducing the outrageous diseases.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The response addresses all parts of the prompt by discussing both the loss of species and other important environmental problems, while also providing the writer's own opinion in the introduction and conclusion. Ideas are presented and supported with examples, such as the Kakapo and Betony for the first view, and air pollution and skin cancer in Africa for the second view. However, some arguments lack full extension and suffer from slight generalisations and factual inaccuracies in naming examples. The position is clear throughout, but the development of ideas remains somewhat superficial in places, preventing the response from reaching a higher band. Overall, it successfully satisfies the core requirements of Task 2.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The essay displays a coherent overall arrangement with a clear chronological structure separating the two views and the writer's opinion. Paragraphing is utilised appropriately, with each body paragraph focusing on a distinct aspect of the prompt. However, cohesive devices are at times mechanical or somewhat repetitive, such as the frequent reliance on 'For example' and 'Other...'. Referencing is generally clear, though transitional phrases linking sentences could be handled with greater flexibility and variety. Progression is maintained throughout the text, but the mechanical nature of the linking elements places this response firmly in the mid-range for cohesion.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully incorporating terms such as 'extinction', 'biodiversity', 'ozone depletion', and 'radiation'. However, there are notable word choice and collocation inaccuracies throughout the text, such as 'animal specific breeds' instead of 'species of animals', 'strong radiations from the son' containing a spelling error ('son' instead of 'sun'), and 'outrageous diseases'. Less common vocabulary is attempted, but control is inconsistent. Spelling and morphological errors do not severely impede communication, but they occur frequently enough to restrict the score to a solid Band 6.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The writer employs a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating some control over multi-clause structures (e.g., 'If remained unnoticed there will be multiple health hazards...'). However, there are persistent grammatical errors and punctuation issues, such as missing articles ('in medical', 'in environmental sector'), subject-verb agreement slips ('problem are on rise', 'needs management'), and awkward phrasing. Complex structures frequently contain errors or awkward phrasing. While these errors rarely completely impede understanding, their frequency prevents the response from achieving a higher band descriptor.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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