Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Complete Catalyst · 2026-09-03

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)

Nowadays stress have become an increasingly important topic in modern society, while some believes that number of people suffer stress are currently higher, others argue that people from past were more stressed, this essay will discuss about both point of views before explaining why I believe which is the right option.

To begin with in our society stress plays a huge role in background, higher the stress level the lower will be the person output is, in modern society why stress became an important issue? One of the most common reason is less interaction with the society, this is mainly because of modern technology, people are connected to each other by internet but the crucial point is that they are not physically interacting, due to this they cannot express themselves properly, for instance people working abroad are the most stressed ones as they are not in there country and they have pressure of doing something that will change the fate of remaining family or future family, they spend working all day, and try to earn as much as they can and have a little time to express themselves,

On the other hand some argue that stress levels were higher in old times, because there were less use of technologies, and work was very harder earning wages were also not that high, but this do not mean that they were stressed, they were happy at the dinner table, they spent quality time with their family releasing stress, and also environment plays a vital role as the temperature were moderate, and many nature aspects were not disturb, so they have nature and their families which lowers the stress level in old times,

In conclusion, it is clear that stress have become an important point, I believe that stress is now a bigger problem than before, due to many reasons which are stated in this essay, taking everything into consideration stress is higher in this modern era.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses both sides of the argument and provides a clear personal opinion. However, the development of ideas is somewhat superficial. For instance, the argument regarding modern technology causing stress is a good starting point, but the example of people working abroad is not fully linked to the broader societal context of stress. The discussion on previous generations is also a bit simplistic, relying on generalisations about nature and family life. To reach a higher band, you should provide more specific, nuanced evidence or examples to support your claims, ensuring that the link between your arguments and the prompt is more robust and analytical.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organised into clear paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the structure. However, the use of cohesive devices is often mechanical or repetitive. For example, the transition 'To begin with' and 'On the other hand' are standard, but the internal flow within paragraphs is sometimes disjointed. Some sentences are run-on, such as the opening sentence, which makes the logical progression feel slightly cluttered. Improving the variety of linking words and ensuring that each sentence flows naturally into the next would significantly enhance the coherence of your writing.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary used is generally adequate for the task but lacks the precision and range required for higher bands. You rely on basic terms like 'important', 'huge', and 'good'. There are also some awkward collocations, such as 'nature aspects were not disturb' and 'less use of technologies'. While the meaning is clear, the lack of sophisticated or idiomatic language limits the score. To improve, focus on using more precise academic vocabulary and collocations, such as 'societal pressures' instead of 'stress plays a huge role in background'.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

There are frequent grammatical errors throughout the text, particularly with subject-verb agreement ('stress have become', 'some believes', 'number of people suffer stress are') and article usage. The sentence structures are often repetitive or contain punctuation errors, such as comma splices. While you attempt some complex sentences, they are often marred by these persistent errors. To improve, you should focus on mastering basic subject-verb agreement and sentence boundary punctuation. Reducing the number of errors will allow your ideas to be communicated more effectively.

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

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.