Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Complete Catalyst · 2026-08-19

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

In some societies, stress is now regarded as a major problem, and it is thought that people suffer from more stress than they did in the past. However, others feel that the amount of stress people have today is exaggerated. They say that previous generations were under more pressure, but the idea of suffering from stress did not exist.

Discuss both these views and give your own opinion.

You should use your own ideas, knowledge and experience and support your arguments with examples and relevant evidence.

Student answer (Band 5.5)

A considerable proportion of people believe that stress is generally more prominent in individuals now then it was in previous decades. However, other argue that there is exaggertaion in claims regarding stress people have today. Although the latter opinion can be true in some cases, I believe that stress is prevalent in people in today's era because of internet.

Stress is now considered as a crucial problem in some societies because every person now going through some kind of pressure and anxiety. The contributing factor for that is people spending most of their time on social media scrolling reels and watching influencer. Hence, they are starting to believe that every person they are seeing on internet is happy and doing good in his life, only they are left behind. As a result, they go into depression, but the problem with this thinking is that people only share their best moment on internet and most of the time they are doing fake things just to stay relevant.

The proponents against this argument argue that people are overstating about stress because it looks cool nowadays. People in the past also suffered from these types of problems, just the term was not invented back then. For instance, most people share sad and depressing video to get attention. However, we cannot generalize individuals based on that one thing. Stress is very severe problem and it can lead to suicide sometimes, so we should pay special attention to it.

To conclude, although people are faking their depression or anxiety, I strongly believe that we should deal stress by avoiding social media.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses both views and provides a clear personal opinion. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited. While you mention social media as a cause of stress, the explanation is slightly repetitive and lacks depth. The counter-argument regarding previous generations is mentioned but could be more robustly supported with specific historical context or broader societal analysis. The conclusion is a bit abrupt and focuses only on one solution (avoiding social media) rather than summarizing the main points of the discussion. To improve, ensure each body paragraph fully explores the 'why' and 'how' behind your arguments with more detailed examples.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, which helps the reader follow your argument. You use some cohesive devices like 'However', 'Hence', and 'To conclude' to link ideas. However, the flow between sentences is sometimes mechanical, and the transition between the two viewpoints could be smoother. For instance, the shift from the impact of social media to the counter-argument about the past feels a bit sudden. Improving the variety of linking words and ensuring that each paragraph has a clear topic sentence would enhance the overall coherence of your writing.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'prevalent', 'proponents', and 'generalize'. However, there are some inaccuracies in word choice and collocation, such as 'doing fake things' instead of 'portraying an inauthentic lifestyle' or 'deal stress' instead of 'deal with stress'. Additionally, there are minor spelling errors like 'exaggertaion'. To reach a higher band, focus on using more precise academic collocations and ensure that your vocabulary is used in the correct grammatical context to convey your meaning more effectively.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors that occasionally distract the reader. Examples include 'other argue' (should be 'others argue'), 'every person now going through' (missing auxiliary verb 'is'), and 'watching influencer' (should be plural 'influencers'). There are also issues with article usage and prepositional phrases. While these errors do not completely impede communication, they occur frequently enough to prevent a higher score. Focus on subject-verb agreement and ensuring that your complex sentences are constructed with accurate punctuation and verb forms.

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