Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-09-19

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)

Some people believe that the majority of current environmental issues are the loss of some species of fauna and flora, On the other hand some people argue that there are more crucial effects. This essay highlights the reasons for both views. Although changing climate have serious impacts on various species, there are other problems that needed to be adderessed.

As the temperature on Earth is fluctuating, the problems like drought, plant stress, availabilty of water in some areas ares increasing. All these issues are directly effecting the growth of many plants in ceratin regions at a specific time of the year. Moreover, the effect of changing weather throughout the globe have severely damaged the habitat for many species. For their survival such species have to migrate from native to some other place. This migration can result in them being an easy target for the predators and hence the population decreased to level of becoming endangered or extinct.

Whereas, the believers of the second opinion are worried about more serious threats. For instance, the human health. The increasing number of industrial waste such as smoke released in air. Such wastes along with some dangerous gases results in the depletion of the ozone layer. UV radiation directly reaches to biosphere will further increase the temperature. Such wastes are also the reason of smog. Collectively, these reasons raise to many health issues like breathing problems, skin allergies, and some types of cancer.

There is no doubt that we need to conserve the species but in my opinion issues related to human health are need to be considered more seriously. The root causes should be fixed to create a healthy environment for humans so that they could work on conserving the other species too.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses all parts of the prompt by discussing both views on environmental problems and clearly stating a personal opinion. The writer considers the loss of species in the second paragraph, then discusses other critical issues such as human health and industrial waste in the third paragraph. A clear position is maintained throughout the essay and reiterated in the conclusion. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited and occasionally brief, placing this response firmly in the Band 6 territory. While the arguments presented are relevant, certain points, such as the exact mechanisms of species loss and the connection between industrial waste and health, could have been extended further with more precise supporting details to reach a higher band level.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay displays a coherent overall arrangement with a logical progression of ideas across paragraphs. Introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion are present and distinct. Cohesive devices are employed, such as 'Moreover', 'Whereas', and 'For instance', though some are used somewhat mechanically or inappropriately, such as beginning a sentence with 'Whereas,' in the third paragraph. Paragraphing is generally appropriate, yet referencing and logical transitions between some sentences could be smoother to avoid choppy phrasing. Overall, the organizational structure is clear enough to guide the reader through the arguments without confusion, aligning well with the Band 6 descriptors.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary suitable for the task, attempting less common lexical items such as 'fauna and flora', 'depletion of the ozone layer', and 'biosphere'. However, there are noticeable spelling and word choice errors throughout the text, including 'adderessed' instead of 'addressed', 'availabilty', 'effecting' instead of 'affecting', 'ceratin', and the phrase 'raise to many health issues' instead of 'give rise to'. These inaccuracies occasionally detract from the reading experience, though communication is not impeded. The lexical range demonstrates a mix of common and less common expressions, reflecting typical Band 6 performance.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, utilizing structures like conditional clauses and relative clauses. However, control over grammar and sentence construction is inconsistent. There are several noticeable grammatical errors, such as subject-verb agreement issues in 'the majority of current environmental issues are the loss' and 'issues related to human health are need to be considered', as well as sentence fragments like 'On the other hand some people argue that there are more crucial effects.' Punctuation and article usage also show frequent minor slips. Because these errors occur regularly alongside a mixture of correct structures, the grammar aligns with the Band 6 descriptor.

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