Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Complete Catalyst · 2026-08-09
IELTS Writing Task 2 question
In some countries, it can be very difficult for people over the age of 50 to get good jobs, despite their experience.
What do you think are the causes of this problem, and what measures could be taken to solve it?
You should use your own ideas, knowledge and experience and support your arguments with examples and relevant evidence.
Student answer (Band 5.5)
It has become challenging to find a decent job for 50+ aged people even they have experience. It can be due to numerous reasons, including lack of updated skills/techniques and physical fitness. However, these issues could be addressed by improving physical health and adapting themselves to new skills.
Nowadays, people of age 50 and above struggle to get a good job. Although, they are expert in their fields, but most of them do not have enough knowledge about the skills or techniques required to perform current jobs. In the present era, digital skills are necessary to work in any sector or department. For instance, a teacher with an experience of twenty years, do not know the recent teaching methodologies as well as the tools like, projector, and screen. Students of digital era need to be taught with modern teaching approaches. Moreover, people above the age of fifty are not physically active, and take more time to do a task. In addition, they are more vulnerable to diseases, and require leaves frequently. That is why organizations prefer to hire younger individuals to ensure their company's fast progress.
These problems could be solved by many ways. Firstly, the elderly people should make themselves aware about current information and learn new skills that will enable them to secure a good job. For instance, 50+ aged medical doctors should study why traditional medicines are not working against pathogens and how they are becoming resistant to certain drugs. In addition, people over the age of 50 should take care of their weby regular exercising and taking a good diet. It will help them to be active in their routine tasks and chances of illnesses will also get reduced.
In conclusion, although, people above the age of 50 can not work efficiently due their health issues and lack of awareness about modern challenges, they can get a good job by updating themselves with recent innovations and taking care of their health.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The response addresses both parts of the prompt: causes and solutions. The ideas are relevant, such as the need for digital literacy and the impact of physical health on productivity. However, the development is somewhat uneven. The example regarding medical doctors is slightly tangential, as it focuses on clinical knowledge rather than the broader issue of employability for older workers. While the position is clear, some arguments could be more thoroughly extended to reach a higher band. Overall, the response covers the requirements of the task adequately.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0
The essay is logically organized into clear paragraphs. There is a progression of ideas from the introduction to the body paragraphs and the conclusion. Cohesive devices are used, such as 'Moreover', 'In addition', and 'Firstly', though some transitions feel a bit mechanical. The referencing is generally clear, although there are occasional issues with sentence-level cohesion, such as the awkward phrasing in the opening sentence. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate the causes from the solutions, which helps the reader follow the argument.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, allowing the writer to express their ideas clearly. There are some attempts at topic-specific vocabulary, such as 'digital skills', 'methodologies', and 'pathogens'. However, the range is somewhat limited, and there are instances of awkward word choices, such as '50+ aged people' and 'take care of their weby'. These errors do not impede communication, but they demonstrate a lack of precision. To improve, the student should focus on more natural collocations and varied academic vocabulary.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are several grammatical errors throughout, such as 'even they have experience' (missing 'though'), 'a teacher... do not know' (subject-verb agreement), and 'can not work efficiently due their health' (missing 'to'). While these errors are frequent, they rarely impede the reader's understanding of the main points. The student demonstrates an attempt at complex structures, but control over these is inconsistent. More attention to subject-verb agreement and preposition usage would significantly improve the accuracy.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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