Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Complete Catalyst · 2026-08-25

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Some people regard work as the most important thing in life and have little interest in anything else. Other people are more enthusiastic about their hobbies and leisure interests than their jobs.

Discuss both these attitudes 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)

Lots of individuals regard their work pivotal and are curious about anything else, while other people focus more on their hobbies rather than their jobs. From my perspective hobbies should be crucial.

People merely focusing on their job and giving importance to their jobs will take them to depression. Individuals should have fun also. The more a person is sober about its job the more stress that person would be in the future.

Furthermore, people giving significance to their jobs only are suffering from anxiety. Individuals should have fun at their work . They should engaged themselves to extra curriculum activities as well rather than only focusing at their jobs.

However, if a person finds it peace on hobbies than its a great sign of intelligence , people with great hobbies like playing football or cricket would make them a great sportsman . For instance, my cousin was doing a job from 9 to 5, he was spends hours playing cricket and today he is great player. He has been selected as batsman at the national team. Toda he is much happier than before.

Moreover, individuals having great hobbies are more jolly as compared to those who are serious at their work. They are more talented and fit. Hobbies compels a person to run for about 4 to 5 kilometres.

Additionally, individuals with hobbies are much happier in their life. Their brain becomes creative, they become mentally and physically sturdy.

In a nutshell, people sober at their work are suffering from depression and anxiety, while individuals having several hobbies are much happier and fit as compared to those who are serious about their work.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses both sides of the argument and provides a clear personal opinion. However, the development of ideas is somewhat repetitive and lacks depth. The arguments regarding the negative health impacts of focusing solely on work are stated multiple times without sufficient elaboration or varied evidence. While the example of the cousin is relevant, the essay would benefit from more sophisticated reasoning to justify why hobbies are essential for a balanced life. The conclusion is a summary rather than a synthesis of the arguments presented.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organised into paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the progression of ideas. However, the use of cohesive devices is often mechanical or slightly awkward, such as the repetitive use of 'Additionally' and 'Moreover'. Some transitions between sentences are abrupt, and the logical flow within paragraphs is occasionally disrupted by grammatical errors. The referencing is sometimes unclear, for instance, in the sentence 'if a person finds it peace on hobbies than its a great sign', where the pronoun usage is confusing. Overall, the structure is coherent but lacks sophisticated linking.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary range is adequate for the task but lacks precision and variety. There is a reliance on simple, repetitive terms like 'job', 'work', 'hobbies', and 'happy'. Some word choices are unnatural or incorrect, such as 'sober about its job' (likely meaning 'serious') and 'compels a person to run'. There are also minor spelling errors like 'Toda' instead of 'Today'. To reach a higher band, you should aim to use more precise collocations and a wider range of academic vocabulary to express your ideas more effectively.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The essay contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors that occasionally impede clarity. Common issues include subject-verb agreement ('he was spends'), incorrect pronoun usage ('its' instead of 'it's'), and awkward phrasing ('They should engaged themselves'). Punctuation is also inconsistent, particularly with comma placement. While the meaning is generally understandable, the high frequency of errors prevents the essay from reaching a higher band. Focusing on basic sentence construction and proofreading for subject-verb agreement would significantly improve your score.

See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.

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