Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · IELTS Complete Catalyst · 2026-11-10

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 5.0)

Nowadays, it seems that the number of individuals getting enrolled in higher education at universities has increased across the world after completing their education in school, and there also seems to be a wide range of courses in colleges and universities, which I think is a positive development.

First of all, I would say that it has a positive impact in that it has broadened the common perspective of people about education. Initially, the majority of people just considered it a source of income and nothing else, which limited the positive side of education. Secondly, now we can see a huge variety among the students and a very diverse range of courses they select to pursue in their higher education. It enables people to think outside the box, rather than just going with a typical approach. Major positive impact of this is therre will be lesss vhance

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response4.0
Coherence and Cohesion4.5
Lexical Resource5.5
Grammatical Range and Accuracy5.5
Overall5.0

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.0

You state a clear overall view in the opening, describing the trend as “a positive development,” and you offer relevant reasons, including broader perspectives on education and greater course choice. However, the response addresses the topic only partially: the reasons are asserted rather than explained with specific examples or consequences, and the final point is cut off at “there will be lesss vhance,” leaving the argument incomplete. The response also does not meet the required minimum length, so there is not enough development to fully answer the question. To strengthen the response, explain how course diversity benefits students or society, support each reason with a concrete example, and complete the conclusion.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.5

The response has a recognisable progression: an introduction gives your position, followed by a paragraph presenting reasons. Signposting such as “First of all” and “Secondly” helps readers follow the sequence. However, the ideas are not developed into a complete essay, and the final sentence breaks off, so the overall progression and ending are missing. Some links are also broad rather than precise: “It enables people” does not clearly identify whether “it” refers to course variety or higher education generally. Organise the response into distinct paragraphs for the main reasons and a conclusion, and use clear references and transitions to show how each example supports your position.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use a reasonably varied set of topic-related expressions, including “higher education,” “a wide range of courses,” “diverse range,” and “think outside the box.” These choices communicate the main ideas and show some ability to use less common vocabulary. However, several phrases are awkward or imprecise, such as “getting enrolled,” “broadened the common perspective,” and “a typical approach.” The unfinished ending also contains conspicuous spelling errors (“therre,” “lesss,” “vhance”), which reduce accuracy. Aim for more natural academic collocations and proofread carefully; for example, say “enrolling in higher education” and specify whose perspectives are broadened and in what way.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mixture of sentence forms, including a complex opening with a relative clause (“courses in colleges and universities, which I think is a positive development”) and a contrast structure (“rather than just going with…”). Most of the intended meaning is understandable. However, control is uneven in longer sentences, and the response ends with an incomplete construction: “Major positive impact of this is therre will be lesss vhance.” The opening sentence is also overloaded, making the relationship between its ideas harder to follow. Use shorter, well-controlled sentences alongside complex ones, check articles and sentence boundaries, and ensure every sentence has a complete grammatical structure.

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