Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-09-26

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 argue that the extinction of particular species of plants and animals is the most serious environmental problem the world is facing today. Others believes that there are more pressing environmental issues. This essay will discuss both views before presenting my personal opinion.

On the one hand, it is clear that the world is experiencing significant decline in number of various species of plants and animals. Numerous varieties of Floras and Faunas are in the verge of extinction due to serious human activities including, industralization, unplanned urbanization, deforestation, development of nuclear weapons, and carbon emissions. Large number of plants are being cut in order to fulfill the demand of human beings, especially for furniture, timber, firewood, and medicinal herbs. Along with it, many birds and animals are near extiction due to loss of habitat posed by deforestation.

I do believe that environmental problems are far behind the loss of plants and animals. Serious human activities, as mentioned above, has other adverse effect on life of human being as well as the planet Earth. We are experiencing global warming due to excess emission of green house gases, over-utilization of natural resources, deforestation, and nuclear bomb blasts. The rise in temperature has caused snow in mountains and glaciers to melt, extreme climate conditions, unpredictable climate, and melting of ice in Earth's pole. These climatic conditions has invited vulnerable natural disasters including flood, landslides, glacier lake outburst, depletion of ozone layer, and many pollutions that are harmful for the life of people along with the Earth.

In my perspective, mother earth should be preserved well for future generations by using renewable sources of energy, plantation of trees, preserving forests and optimal utilization of natural resources.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

The response addresses all parts of the prompt by discussing both views—that biodiversity loss is the main environmental problem, and that other issues are more significant—while also presenting a clear personal opinion. The writer attempts to explore the causes and impacts of biodiversity loss alongside other issues such as global warming and natural disasters. However, the development of ideas is somewhat uneven and contradictory in places; for example, the body paragraph meant to discuss alternative views concludes with 'I do believe that environmental problems are far behind the loss of plants and animals,' which muddies the structural distinction between the two perspectives. Furthermore, the final paragraph feels underdeveloped as a conclusion, relying on general assertions rather than a robust summary. Overall, the task is addressed, but the depth of argumentation aligns best with Band 6.0 descriptors.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The essay displays a generally coherent overall arrangement with a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and a concluding statement. Cohesive devices are employed to link ideas, such as 'On the one hand,' although the corresponding 'On the other hand' is missing, replaced instead by 'I do believe.' Paragraphing is attempted, but the grouping of ideas is slightly flawed; the second body paragraph mixes the discussion of other environmental issues with personal belief statements that belong in a dedicated viewpoint or concluding section. Referencing and logical progression are occasionally hindered by abrupt transitions and mechanical links. These characteristics correspond directly to Band 6, where the overall organisation is clear, but cohesion and logical flow show noticeable faults.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The student demonstrates an adequate vocabulary range for the task, attempting less common items such as 'industralization,' 'unplanned urbanization,' and 'over-utilization.' However, there are notable spelling and word-choice errors that detract from precision, including 'believes' instead of 'believe,' 'significant decline in number' missing an article ('a significant decline'), 'Floras and Faunas' (flora and fauna are generally uncountable), 'industralization' (industrialization), and 'extiction' (extinction). Furthermore, collocation is occasionally awkward, such as 'invited vulnerable natural disasters' where 'triggered' or 'caused' would be more natural. Because the vocabulary range is sufficient to communicate the main points despite frequent minor lexical and spelling slips, a Band 6.0 score is appropriate.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The response contains a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating some ambition with subordinate clauses and participial phrases. However, grammatical accuracy is inconsistent due to frequent errors. Examples include subject-verb agreement issues like 'Serious human activities... has other adverse effect' (instead of 'have other adverse effects') and 'These climatic conditions has invited' (instead of 'have invited'). Additionally, missing articles ('in number of various species', 'on life of human being') and minor prepositions errors are common. While these errors do not completely impede communication, they occur with enough frequency to prevent the essay from reaching Band 6.5 or 7.0, making Band 6.0 a fair representation of the writer's current grammatical control.

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