Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · IELTS Momentum Workout · 2026-10-17

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 5.0)

Some people argue that environment crisis are way more than previous. To reduce them recycling is better option. While on the other hand, few people considered recycling is not enough. Make some alternatives that reduce the consumption. Moreover, it demands several implementations.

Many people want to help the environment, and more of them are recycling every year. Recycling is a good habit. When we recycle cans, paper, and glass, they can be made into new things. This saves energy and keeps trash out of landfills. Old things like cans, paper, and glass are made into new things.

This saves energy and keeps trash out of landfills.

It is easy for everyone to do.

But some people say recycling is not enough. Many things, like plastic, cannot be recycled well, and recycling still uses energy and water. These people believe we should also buy and use fewer things. If we make fewer things, we use fewer resources and cause less pollution. This means buying and using fewer things.

If we make fewer things, we use fewer resources and make less pollution.

Some people say recycling is not enough because many things, like plastic, cannot be recycled well.Reducing consumption avoids the environmental cost of manufacturing and transporting goods in the first place, so it addresses the problem at the source.

I think both ideas are important. Recycling helps with the waste we already have, and buying less stops waste before it starts. The best way to help the planet is to do both: buy only what we need, reuse things, and recycle the rest.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You address both views and give a clear opinion in the final paragraph: recycling deals with existing waste, while buying less prevents waste from arising. Relevant explanations include recycling saving energy and keeping rubbish out of landfills, and reduced consumption lowering resource use and pollution. However, the discussion is only partly developed. The recycling argument is mostly general, with no specific example or explanation of its limitations until later; the case for consuming less is repeated rather than extended. The opening also refers vaguely to an “environment crisis” and “alternatives” without clearly setting out the two positions. Develop each view with a distinct example and explain why your combined approach is preferable.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.5

The response has a recognisable overall structure: an introduction, separate discussion of recycling and reduced consumption, and a concluding opinion. This helps the reader identify the main points. However, progression within the body is weakened by substantial repetition: the sentences about saving energy and keeping waste out of landfills appear twice, as do the points about using fewer resources and causing less pollution. The recycling limitation is also repeated almost verbatim. Some transitions, such as “Moreover,” do not clearly connect the ideas that follow, and the opening’s “While on the other hand” is awkwardly combined. Remove duplicated material and use clear topic sentences and purposeful links between each claim and its explanation.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use enough topic-related vocabulary to communicate the main ideas, including “recycle,” “landfills,” “resources,” “pollution,” and “manufacturing and transporting goods.” The phrase “addresses the problem at the source” is particularly effective and expresses the consumption argument precisely. However, the range is limited in places, and several expressions are inaccurate or unnatural, such as “environment crisis,” “recycling is better option,” and “make some alternatives.” Repeated use of “things” and “good” also makes the discussion less precise. Aim for more accurate collocations and specific nouns, such as “products,” “packaging,” or “household waste,” while avoiding repeated wording. This would make the argument clearer and more natural.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

Most of the response uses short, straightforward sentences, and these generally communicate the central message. There are attempts at more complex structures, including “While on the other hand, few people considered…” and “If we make fewer things, we use fewer resources…,” but control is uneven. Errors include subject–verb agreement in “environment crisis are,” a missing article in “recycling is better option,” and an incomplete or awkward opening construction beginning “While on the other hand.” The sentence “Some people say recycling is not enough because… well.Reducing…” also needs punctuation and a clear separation between sentences. Practise accurate articles and agreement, and build longer sentences with clear clause relationships; proofread punctuation to prevent ideas running together.

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