Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Momentum Workout · 2026-08-23

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Concern for the environment is growing and more and more people are choosing to recycle. But some people suggest that recycling is not enough. They believe we need to consume less.

Discuss both these views and give your own opinion.

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge and experience.

Student answer (Band 5.5)

Environmental sustainability is vital for green market and majority of the population believe that recycling products enhances it, other proportion of the population argue that recycling is not enough and therefore, there is need to consume less in order to conserve and sustain the environment.

In this article, both views will be discussed.

Overall, recycling enables products to be reused thereby reducing wastes and saving the cost of expenditure in the country at large. Wastes such as plastic bags, containers and metals neither decay nor decompose therefore, it is essential that such products are recycled.

Recycling occurs in industries and this provides the younger generation with employment opportunities. More people are employed by recycling companies proving a stable economy in the country.

On the other hand, recycling alone may not be the solution for clean environment. The process involved in recycling wastes may pose hazards to the the population because some industries may not adhere to standards during recycling. Some individuals may be predisposed to upper respiratory diseases such as pneumonia while others may suffer from intestinal diseases resulting from water contamination.

In my opinion, this could cause more harm than good in the population with more expenditure from the government in quest to carb the mortalities caused by recycling. I believe there is need to consume less in order to overcome the consequences of recycling.

In conclusion, there is need to equalize the trend in order to maintain the eco system in the environment. The government needs to regulate the recycling industries to conform to standards to avoid air pollution during the process.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses both views regarding recycling and the need to consume less. However, the development of ideas is somewhat uneven. While the benefits of recycling are mentioned, the argument that recycling itself causes health hazards is a weak and somewhat illogical point that lacks supporting evidence or a clear link to the prompt's core theme of consumption. The position is clear, but the reasoning behind the 'consume less' argument is underdeveloped. To improve, ensure that your arguments are logically sound and directly address the prompt's focus on environmental impact rather than introducing tangential health concerns.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organized into clear paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the structure. There is a logical progression from the introduction to the body paragraphs and the conclusion. However, the use of cohesive devices is sometimes mechanical or slightly awkward, such as 'In this article' (which is inappropriate for an essay) and 'equalize the trend'. Referencing is generally clear, but the transition between the recycling benefits and the health hazards is abrupt, making the flow feel disjointed in the middle section. More varied linking words would enhance the overall coherence.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is adequate for the task but lacks precision and sophistication. There are some awkward collocations and word choices, such as 'green market' (which is unclear in this context), 'quest to carb' (likely a misspelling of 'curb'), and 'equalize the trend'. While the student attempts to use topic-specific vocabulary like 'sustain', 'decompose', and 'mortalities', the overall range is limited. To reach a higher band, focus on using more precise academic collocations and ensure that words are used in their correct context to convey meaning accurately.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. However, there are frequent grammatical errors that occasionally impede clarity, such as missing articles ('in the the population', 'in quest to carb'), subject-verb agreement issues, and awkward phrasing ('other proportion of the population argue'). Punctuation is generally functional, but some sentences are run-on or lack necessary commas to separate clauses. While the meaning is usually clear, the frequency of these errors prevents the essay from reaching a higher band. Focusing on proofreading for basic article and preposition usage would be highly beneficial.

See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.

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