Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Complete Catalyst · 2026-11-06

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

In many countries these days, the number of people continuing their education after school has increased, and the range of courses available at universities and colleges has also increased.

Do you think this is a positive or negative development?

You should use your own ideas, knowledge and experience and support your arguments with examples and relevant experience.

Student answer (Band 5.5)

Now a days more people have started to persue their studies after passing out from school and similarly universities have also increased number of programs. In this essay, I will explain the positive and negative espects of this trend and give my opinion.

The first advantage of continuing education after school is that overall the litracy rate of the society increases and educated people contribute more in the development of the country. This is the main reason that universtities have also increased their list of programs so that everyone choose a program according to their intersest and education background. Another major advantage of higher education is the amout of innovation increases that leads to economic growth and more job upportunities.

Coming to the negative effects of this trend, as more people accquire higher education the saturation in every field has increased significantly and job market became limited. Companies have added more strict selection criteria related to technical experiance and skill so that only the cream of the available resources could get the position. Additionally, considering the increased demand of higher education, private universities have started to make it a business by offering programs that have no significant impact on overall society betterment and economic growth; for example programs related to dancing and few other arts related fields.

In conclusion, a wide range of programs are being offered by universities to attract individuals with specific interests. In my opinion it is a positive development because literacy rate is the key to improve basic civics and community management.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You address both the benefits and drawbacks and give a clear overall view in the conclusion: you consider the trend positive because education can improve literacy and civic life. The points about innovation and job-market saturation are relevant, but several are asserted rather than explained. For instance, you say more graduates lead to economic growth, then note that jobs become limited, without clarifying how these effects coexist or who is most affected. The example of arts courses is also broad and does not show why such courses have little social value. To strengthen the response, develop fewer points with a specific explanation or example, and make your position on the expanded range of courses clearer as well as your view of continuing education.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a clear overall structure: an introduction, a paragraph on advantages, a paragraph on disadvantages, and a conclusion. Transitions such as “The first advantage,” “Coming to the negative effects,” and “In conclusion” help readers follow the main stages. However, the progression within paragraphs is sometimes mechanical, and links between claims are not always fully explained. For example, the discussion moves from increased literacy to universities expanding their programs without showing the precise connection, while the shift from innovation to job-market saturation could be better signposted as a contrast. Use a wider range of natural linking and referencing, and organise each paragraph around a central claim followed by explanation and an example.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use some relevant topic vocabulary, including “literacy rate,” “economic growth,” “job market,” and “selection criteria,” which allows you to discuss education and employment. There are also attempts at more specific phrasing, such as “technical experience and skill.” However, spelling errors are noticeable, including “persue,” “litracy,” “universtities,” and “upportunities,” and some word choices or collocations are awkward, such as “the cream of the available resources” and “society betterment.” These reduce the precision and polish of the message. Build accuracy by checking spelling carefully and learning common academic collocations; choose precise terms rather than translated or informal expressions.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and complex sentences, including a reason clause in “so that everyone choose a program” and a relative clause in “innovation increases that leads to economic growth.” The overall meaning is generally understandable, but errors in agreement, tense, articles, and sentence construction recur. For example, “everyone choose” needs a singular verb, “innovation increases that leads” has an unclear grammatical link and agreement problem, and “job market became limited” shifts tense without a clear reason. Some sentences also combine several ideas in ways that make the relationships difficult to follow. Practise checking subject–verb agreement and maintaining consistent tense, and revise complex sentences so each clause has a clear subject and verb.

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.