Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Complete Catalyst · 2026-10-21

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 communities, stress is widely known as a significant challenge, additionally it is understood that people face anxiety than they had in the past. Although, other's opinion is that the proportion of stress people haave in the present time is overrated. According to them, past generations were under more pressing anxiety, but the nootion of facing stress did not ocuur.

In this essay we will discuss both perspectives and add our opinion. There are opposite narratives about whether the depression is most challenging isuue and do people really face it, comparatively preveious era, as it's a double edged sword, so the other proposition strongly oppose this narration.

On one hand, no doubt the anxiety is an extreme issue which occurs in the recent time, undoubtely people have had face it during their life ups and downs while facing their financial cercumtances, work life balance issues and numerous other factors, for instance recently in Pakistan there was a girl who was applying for admission in Harvard University with the help of an agent, however the agent manupulated her family by sending them an ai generated document. Unfortunately, when the family came to know of this bogus admission letter, the girl could not bear the pressure and she commited sucide. So I firmly beleive that this issue is significantly increasing and people are facing it now days.

On the other hand, people who have a distinct narrative about this issue that the number of individual is not on the peak and it is just misrepresented. According to them our ancestors in the past few decades have had this challenge more than the current time, but for them it was not a severe issue. Well, i strongly oppose this narative as it is misinterpreted. For example people of past times did not use technology which is advanced now but due the fact that in recent times when everyone is screen addicted which is a big reason of depression in adults, i think past societies have had not compete this problem.

In conclusin, both ideas have their own reasons and logics behind and the notions regarding existancce of this problem are yet to be considered accordingly.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You address both views and state your position, particularly when you say you “firmly believe” stress is increasing and later “strongly oppose” the claim that the past was more stressful. The examples of financial and work pressures and the story about the student provide relevant support. However, the discussion is uneven: the first view receives a more specific example, while the second relies mainly on a broad claim about technology and screen use. The introduction also shifts between stress, anxiety and depression without clarifying their relationship, and the conclusion says the issue is “yet to be considered” rather than clearly restating your judgement. Develop each side with a focused explanation and make your final position consistent and explicit.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable essay structure, with an introduction, two body paragraphs signposted by “On one hand” and “On the other hand,” and a conclusion. These markers help readers identify the two perspectives. However, progression within paragraphs is sometimes difficult to follow: the second introductory paragraph contains several competing claims, and the first body paragraph moves quickly from general pressures to a detailed anecdote without clearly linking the example back to the argument. Some linking phrases, such as “Well” and “So,” are conversational or do not establish precise logical relationships. The conclusion is also vague rather than synthesising the discussion. Organise each body paragraph around one clear claim, explain it, then connect the example explicitly to that claim.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You attempt a range of topic-related vocabulary, including “financial circumstances,” “work life balance,” “misrepresented,” and “screen addicted.” Some choices are effective, but errors in spelling, word form and collocation are frequent and sometimes make the meaning harder to follow: “pressing anxiety,” “the proportion of stress people have,” and “compete this problem” are not natural expressions in context. There is also imprecise switching among “stress,” “anxiety” and “depression,” which weakens clarity. Several misspellings, including “nootion,” “manupulated” and “conclusin,” further reduce control. Build a reliable set of collocations for discussing pressure and mental health, and check spelling and word forms carefully before submitting.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and complex sentences, including clauses introduced by “although,” “however” and “when,” but control is inconsistent. Errors in sentence construction and agreement appear in examples such as “people face anxiety than they had in the past,” “the number of individual is not on the peak,” and “past societies have had not compete this problem.” The opening sentence also joins two independent ideas awkwardly, while several long sentences combine multiple points without clear grammatical boundaries. These problems can make the reader pause to interpret your meaning. Practise forming accurate comparisons and clauses, and use shorter sentences when an idea becomes complex. Proofread for subject–verb agreement, articles and punctuation, while retaining some varied sentence structures.

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.