Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Complete Catalyst · 2026-09-06

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)

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. Some individuals fell that the amount of stress people have today is exaggerated. They say that previous generations were under more pressure, but the ideas of suffering from stress did not exist . I will discuss both views and also provide my opinion .

On the one hand, people think stress is now regarded as a big problem and people suffer from stress more than they did in the past . This opinion is correct . We can see in these days every people have stress about different things . Firstly, we can say that technology is also a reason of stress . Secondly, every person take stress for their job . If we talk about all children then they have stress of their study . For example; in the past, one person in the family would get a government job and work there for 30 years peacefully . Today , in India , even a 12th pass student feels stress because of private jobs , targets , and the fear of being replaced by AI or other candidates .

On the other hand, others believe stress is exaggerated . Previous generation faced more serious problems like wars , poverty , and lack of medical facilities , but they saw it as a part of life . Nowadays , people label even small problems , like slow internet or office traffic , as stress.

To conclude , although modern life brings new pressure from technology and competition , I believe stress is both real and somewhat exaggerated because we are now more aware of it .

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses all parts of the prompt, discussing both views and providing a clear personal opinion. The ideas are relevant, such as the impact of technology and the comparison with past hardships like war and poverty. However, the development is somewhat limited. For instance, the argument regarding children's stress is a bit simplistic, and the explanation of why stress is 'exaggerated' could be more deeply explored to reach a higher band. The position is consistent throughout, but the depth of analysis is more characteristic of a Band 6.0, as some points are stated rather than fully extended with robust evidence.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, with a clear introduction, body paragraphs for each view, and a conclusion. Cohesive devices are used, such as 'On the one hand,' 'Secondly,' and 'To conclude,' which help guide the reader. However, the use of these devices is sometimes mechanical or repetitive. For example, the transition between sentences within paragraphs could be smoother to improve the flow of ideas. Referencing is generally clear, but the overall progression of ideas feels a bit disjointed at times, particularly in the transition between the discussion of technology and the specific example of job stress.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is adequate for the task, allowing the student to communicate their ideas clearly. There are attempts to use topic-specific vocabulary like 'private jobs,' 'targets,' and 'medical facilities.' However, the range is somewhat limited, and there is a reliance on basic phrasing (e.g., 'every people have stress,' 'big problem'). There are also minor errors in word choice, such as 'fell' instead of 'feel' and 'ideas' instead of 'idea.' To move to a higher band, the student should incorporate more precise, academic collocations and avoid repetitive sentence structures.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The student uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are frequent grammatical errors, such as subject-verb agreement issues ('every people have,' 'every person take') and punctuation errors (e.g., unnecessary spaces before commas and semicolons). Complex structures are attempted, but they often contain errors that slightly impede the flow. The control over articles and pluralization is inconsistent. To improve, the student needs to focus on proofreading for basic grammatical accuracy and diversifying sentence construction to include more error-free complex sentences.

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

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