Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-09-16

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)

Healthy environment is a play essential role in all living life. In contemporary era, environmental degradation has become one of the most pressing challenges. Nowadays, some people argued that extinction of various species such as plants and animals are the biggest problem; however, some people believe that issues such as climate change, pollution and global warming deserve more attention.

On the one hand, the extinction of plant and animal is a serious environmental problem. Every species plays a crucial role in maintaining the ecological system, and it is disaapearance can distrupt entire food chains. In addition, if one species extinct, it is impossible to restore it naturally. For example, the decline of bees and other pollinators are directly affect on agriculture because many crops and plants depend on them for reproduction. Furthermore, forest and wild llife provide valuable human resources, due to human activities can destroy important plants and animals species.

On the flip side, environmental problems are equally important such as climate change, global warming and increase pollution. They affect entire populations and ecosystems simultaneously. Moreover, these issues directly impact on human health, agriculture and natural habitats. For instance, in Nepal, recently flood disaster occured. The main reason behind this was increased global temperature; these lead mealting ice glacier and increased level of water in river. Similarly, severe air pollution in major cities can cause respiratory and cardiovascular diseases.

In conclusion, although species are significant role in maintaining the ecosystem balance such as the food chain, I believe that wider problems like climate change, pollutions are more urgent, and it affects on all living life.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses all parts of the task by discussing both views on environmental problems and providing a clear personal opinion. The writer establishes a position in the introduction, arguing that wider problems like climate change deserve more attention, and maintains this stance through to the conclusion. The ideas presented are generally relevant, covering ecological disruption on the one hand and climate change and pollution on the other. However, some arguments lack full development or suffer from minor logical leaps, such as the claim that 'forest and wild llife provide valuable human resources, due to human activities can destroy important plants and animals species', which is slightly confused. Overall, the response meets the core requirements of the task adequately, matching the Band 6 expectations well by covering all parts of the prompt with relevant, though occasionally under-developed, ideas.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay displays a coherent overall arrangement with a clear paragraph structure, moving from a logical introduction to body paragraphs representing opposing views, and concluding with a summary of the writer's stance. Cohesive devices are employed to link ideas, such as 'On the one hand', 'On the flip side', and 'In conclusion'. However, referencing and cohesion are sometimes faulty or mechanical. For instance, the transition 'due to human activities can destroy' creates a grammatical and logical breakdown in cohesion. Furthermore, some sentences within paragraphs feel slightly disconnected due to abrupt transitions or repetitive structures. Paragraphing is used sufficiently to separate the different facets of the prompt, but the logical progression between sentences occasionally falters, placing this text firmly within the Band 6 descriptor.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully incorporating topic-specific terms such as 'environmental degradation', 'extinction', 'ecological system', 'pollinators', and 'cardiovascular diseases'. There are, however, several noticeable errors in word choice, form, and collocation throughout the essay. Examples include 'play essential role' instead of 'play an essential role', 'disaapearance', 'distrupt' (disrupt), 'if one species extinct', 'are directly affect on', 'mealting ice glacier', and 'pollutions'. While these errors demonstrate some limitation in lexical control, the vocabulary used is sufficient to convey the writer's intended meaning without severely impeding communication, aligning with the Band 5 to 6 threshold. The frequent minor slips keep it at a solid Band 5.5.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, utilizing conditional structures and subordinate clauses such as 'if one species extinct, it is impossible to restore it naturally' and 'although species are significant role... I believe that wider problems... are more urgent'. However, grammatical accuracy is weak, with frequent errors in verb forms, prepositions, and sentence construction. Examples include 'Healthy environment is a play essential role', 'some people argued' (tense inconsistency), 'the decline of bees and other pollinators are directly affect on', 'flood disaster occured', and 'it affects on all living life'. These frequent errors require the reader to occasionally expend effort to decipher the intended meaning, which reflects the characteristics of Band 5 grammar.

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