Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Momentum Workout · 2026-09-20
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 problem is increasing day by day and recycling is very important concern and it is becoming more encourage. while some people thinks just recycle is not enough to solve environmental problems and reducing consumption is more effective. In my opinion, i believe recycle is one of the part to save nature but using less things make it better.
There are many resources which are recycleable such as paper, plastic,glass and metal. By recycling this material, we can save environment. Whereas, more paper bags should be used rather than plastic bags. Bottles made of plastic and glass can be recycled. In European countries, there are machines available. Where people throws plasic cans, bottles and glass bottle for recycle. By doing this small efforts, it saves the environment and the pollution can be reduced.
To use less products, firstly people should buy and consume as much required things and not buy unnecessary products which have to throw at last. By consuming less items, it benifits most to the enivronment. Where the materials such as paper, plastic, glass, wood will be saved. As the paper is made from the trees, deforestation will reduce. Without neccessary people should not buy electronics, vehicles, cloths and furniture. For example, If a person uses clothes for longer time rather than buying every year, less resources will used and not need to manufacture.
In conclusion, recycling makes resources more usable as it plays an major role but in my opinion, preventing less consumption from begining make more sense. While in some resouces is not possible to consume less such as food, it should not be wasted.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 6.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0
The response addresses all parts of the task by discussing both views on recycling and consumption reduction, while also providing a clear personal opinion. The writer establishes a position early in the introduction, stating that recycling is a part of saving nature but consuming less makes it better. Ideas are introduced and supported with relevant examples, such as mentioning machines in European countries for recycling and discussing how reducing clothing and furniture purchases prevents resource depletion. However, some ideas lack full extension and suffer from underdeveloped explanations, particularly in the conclusion where thoughts on food waste are introduced abruptly. Nevertheless, the main task requirements are met adequately, aligning with the Band 6 descriptor where all parts are addressed with relevant, albeit somewhat underdeveloped, ideas.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0
The essay displays a coherent overall arrangement with a recognisable introduction, body paragraphs addressing each viewpoint, and a conclusion. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate ideas. However, cohesion is sometimes faulty or mechanical. For example, transition phrases like 'Whereas,' and 'Where people throws...' are misused grammatically and structurally, disrupting smooth progression. Referencing is also occasionally unclear, such as the pronoun use in 'By doing this small efforts'. While logical organization is present, the frequent misuse of cohesive devices and clunky transitions prevent the response from achieving a higher band score, placing it firmly at Band 5.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.0
The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully using topic-specific words such as 'environment', 'recyclable', 'deforestation', and 'manufacturing'. However, there are noticeable spelling and word-choice errors throughout the text, including 'encourge' instead of encouraged, 'recycleable' instead of recyclable, 'plasic' instead of plastic, 'benifits' instead of benefits, and 'neccessary' instead of unnecessarily. Furthermore, awkward phrasing such as 'preventing less consumption from begining' limits precision. These errors are frequent enough to cause occasional difficulty for the reader, but the vocabulary remains minimally adequate for communicating the core ideas, matching the Band 5 descriptors.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating some variety in structure with conditional-like clauses and relative pronouns (e.g., 'If a person uses clothes for longer time...'). However, grammatical accuracy is weak, with frequent errors in verb forms, article usage, and subject-verb agreement. Examples include 'Environmental problem is increasing', 'some people thinks', 'just recycle is not enough', 'less resources will used', and 'make more sense'. Punctuation is also erratic in places, particularly with capitalization and commas. These frequent errors can cause difficulty for the reader, though communication is rarely completely obscured, placing this performance at Band 5.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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