Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Complete Catalyst · 2026-10-05

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, some societies says that they suffering from stress and it is the most problem recently. However, other opinions says that in past the pressure were more than now and the idea of stress was not exist.I partly agree with this opinions, as i believe that both opinions have valid points.

Nowadays, i agree that the pressure and the stress are in high level because of many causes. One of the important reasons is the work pressure, recently people are suffering very much in work they have pressure in time and salary for example many people now work more that 8 hours in the day and they must do their work in best ways, plus the salary is very fell and the prices are rosed sharply so that make them stressed, other reasons of stress and high pressure in recent time such as resident problems, many people now are suffering from resident they are renting apartments from long time and the apartments contain very small rooms and the families get bigger and bigger, for example 6 persons cannot leave in appartement of 2 rooms only.

In the past, some people was have many pressure situations but i think the stress was not exist, for example most peoples in the past was have their own homes and they was working at their selves, but some suffering ways like transport and facilities was not exist this was causing a pressure but no stress.

Finally, i agree that both periods have suffered but they differ in the kind of pressure that you can call it stress or just some little problems.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

The response addresses all parts of the task by discussing both views—that modern stress is a major issue and that previous generations faced harder conditions without calling it stress—and provides an opinion in the introduction and conclusion. However, the development of ideas is limited and sometimes tangential. For instance, the discussion on housing problems like '6 persons cannot leave in appartement' is somewhat generalised and under-developed, lacking strong academic support. The writer presents a clear position throughout, but the reasoning remains basic, shifting abruptly between personal generalisations and historical speculation. To reach a higher band, the ideas need deeper extension and more precise, relevant examples.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The essay demonstrates a coherent overall arrangement, with a clear introduction, body paragraphs addressing each viewpoint, and a concluding summary. Paragraphing is utilised, though the second body paragraph is overly dense and contains multiple ideas bundled together without sufficient separation. Cohesive devices are sometimes mechanical or repetitive, such as the frequent reliance on 'Nowadays' and 'for example' to introduce points. Referencing is occasionally unclear, as seen in phrases like 'this was causing a pressure' where the antecedent is broad. Overall organisation is present, but progression lacks a smooth flow due to basic transitional links.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

The vocabulary is limited, demonstrating an adequate range for the task but frequently hindered by noticeable errors in word choice, form, and collocation. Words are often misused, such as 'resident problems' instead of 'housing problems', 'fell' instead of 'low', and 'rosed' instead of 'risen'. There are also frequent issues with word forms, such as 'suffering' used where a noun or adjective might be required, and instances where the wrong lexical item impedes clarity. While the writer attempts some less common vocabulary, the inaccuracies cause some difficulty for the reader, keeping the lexical score at this level.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 4.5

The writing exhibits a very limited range of structures, relying mostly on simple sentences joined by coordinating conjunctions or comma splices. Attempts at complex sentences are frequently faulty, such as 'some societies says that they suffering from stress' and 'most peoples in the past was have their own homes'. There are frequent errors in verb forms, tenses, subject-verb agreement, and articles throughout the text, including 'the pressure were more' and 'stress was not exist'. These errors are frequent and often cause difficulty for the reader, meaning control over grammar remains basic.

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