Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Complete Catalyst · 2026-09-16

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)

It is often argued that work is essential part of life and they have minor intrest in other activities, while other believes that othe people prioritize their favourite activities and other intrests more than jobs. Although both prespective have some merits , I believe that people should not sacrifice thier life just for work.

On the one hand, people who supports the idea of paying thier full attention to their job is compulsory they become like a robort because of stress and burden. They have minor soial interaction as well as they don't have a strong bond with their families as tthey have shortage of time. It can actively affects their mental health along with physical health. For instance, the person who works in an office has more screen work than the other so by interacting with harmful rays impacts badly on brain studies suggest that these ray are bad for health if they are in excessive quantity along with mental issues.

However I beleive that the people who divides their lives in term of work and joy are more interactive and happy. They have creative skills more than others therefore they cope with difficult situations easily. They have meaninful relation with friends and relative as well as they are stick with their loved ones in difficult circumstances. To illustrate, teachers are in most interactive jobs they are asked to build realtion with their students and thier parents. They are more verbal and active as compare to any other job they enjoy activities with students.

In conlusion, although the people who focused relatively more on thier work are successful and progressive but I agree that enjoying life with intrests is equally very crucial to become mentally, physicall happy and satisfied.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses all parts of the task by discussing both attitudes towards work versus leisure and providing a clear personal opinion. The writer's position is maintained throughout the essay. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited and lacks robust supporting evidence in places. For example, the argument about office workers and screen time touches on a relevant point regarding physical health, but the explanation drifts into vague generalisations about 'harmful rays' rather than developing a focused argument about work-life balance. Similarly, the example of teachers is introduced to illustrate social interaction, but the connection to the prompt's core theme of prioritising hobbies over work is slightly weak. Overall, the task is addressed adequately, placing it firmly in the Band 6 territory.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is arranged into four logical paragraphs: an introduction, two body paragraphs discussing each perspective, and a conclusion. There is a clear overall progression of ideas, and the writer uses basic cohesive devices such as 'On the one hand', 'However', and 'In conclusion'. However, referencing and cohesion are sometimes faulty or mechanical. For instance, phrases like 'the person who works in an office has more screen work than the other' lack clear antecedents. Furthermore, internal sentence cohesion suffers from awkward phrasing, such as 'they are stick with their loved ones'. Paragraphing is used appropriately, but overall cohesive management prevents the response from reaching a higher band.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, attempting some less common items such as 'progressive', 'circumstances', and 'interaction'. However, there are numerous noticeable errors in word choice, spelling, and word formation throughout the text. Examples include 'intrest' instead of 'interest', 'prespective' instead of 'perspective', 'robort' instead of 'robot', 'soial' instead of 'social', 'meaninful' instead of 'meaningful', and 'conlusion' instead of 'conclusion'. While these errors do not completely impede communication, their frequency prevents the lexical score from exceeding Band 5.5.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, including conditional and concessive clauses such as 'Although both prespective have some merits , I believe that...' and 'if they are in excessive quantity'. However, there are frequent grammatical errors, particularly with subject-verb agreement, articles, and prepositions. Examples include 'It is often argued that work is essential part of life', 'they have minor intrest', 'people who supports', and 'are stick with their loved ones'. Punctuation errors, such as spaces before commas, are also present. These frequent errors cause occasional difficulty for the reader, aligning the grammar with Band 5.0.

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

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