Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.0 · 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 5.0)
While some individuals content that the accelerating depletion of flora and fauna stands as the most critical ecological crisis of the modern era, other argues that alternative environmental challenges pose a far great threat to our planet. I believe global climate changes is a more fundamental and urgent issue, as it directly drives biodiversity loss alongside numerous other catastrophic consequences.
On the one hand,there are compelling reasons why the extinstion of specific plants and animal species is viewed as a paramount concern. Ecosystem rely on a delicate balance of biodiversity, where every organism plays a unique role in maintaning stability. The loss of specific keystone species can trigger a domino effect, leading to the collapse of entire food chains and habitats.
On the other hand, a strong counterarguement suggest that other environmental carries much more severeclimate
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 4.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 4.0
The student has failed to meet the minimum word count requirement of 250 words, with the response abruptly ending at 136 words. Because the essay is severely under-length, it cannot fully address all parts of the task or develop ideas to the extent required for higher bands. The introduction does present a clear position and outlines the two opposing views, and the first body paragraph begins to explore the loss of species. However, the second body paragraph cuts off mid-sentence (other environmental carries much more severeclimate), leaving the discussion incomplete. Consequently, Task Achievement is heavily penalised for failing to meet the length requirement and for the incomplete nature of the response.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0
The response shows some basic structural organisation, attempting an introduction and standard paragraph breaks for opposing views. Cohesive devices such as 'While some individuals', 'On the one hand', and 'On the other hand' are correctly introduced to structure the discourse. However, due to the severe truncation of the text, logical progression cannot be fully established, and the essay breaks down entirely in the second body paragraph where the sentence is left unfinished. Paragraphing is initiated properly, but the lack of completion prevents a fully coherent overall arrangement. Based on the language successfully produced, this aligns with a band 5.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.0
The student demonstrates an adequate vocabulary range for the task, attempting some less common and topic-specific lexical items such as 'accelerating depletion', 'ecological crisis', 'biodiversity', 'keystone species', and 'domino effect'. However, there are notable spelling and word-choice errors that detract from the writing, including 'content' instead of 'contend', 'extinstion', 'maintaning', and 'counterarguement'. Despite these errors, the intended meaning remains mostly clear. The vocabulary is minimally adequate for the discussion, but frequent mechanical errors prevent it from reaching higher bands.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, such as the introductory concessive clause 'While some individuals content that...' and the relative clause '...where every organism plays a unique role...'. However, grammatical control is compromised by several noticeable errors, including subject-verb agreement issues ('other argues', 'Ecosystem rely') and missing words or abrupt terminations ('other environmental carries much more severeclimate'). While some sentences are error-free and demonstrate an understanding of complex forms, the frequency of slips and the incomplete ending place this firmly in the band 5 category.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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