Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Complete Catalyst · 2026-10-07

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)

Few individuals believe that work is the most important thing in life and have least interest in any other activity. Other individuals are more interested in doing their hobbies, leisure activities of their interests than their jobs. I believe doing leisure activities of personal interests and hobbies is more important and this will be explained with proper examples in the upcoming paragraphs.

To begin with, one of the advantages of doing only work and not fulfilling any hobbies is that a person cannot be refrained from money any day, as he might be doing job regularly so he will not get the monetary problem. Furthermore, a person who has little interest in doing leisure activities of his interest and does only work can be an admiration for others as the person can be talked of when someone advises the other person to do the work regularly without complaining about anything.

On the other hand, one of the advantages in doing one self's hobbies and leisure activities of personal interest is that a person cannot get bored any day from work and he will be happy more as he will do the work which excites him. Moreover, doing hobbies is important as the person might get anxieties if one does not do any other activities other than work and it can lead to depression and this can be avoided if the person does the activity of one's interests.

To conclude, although doing work only and not doing any hobbies have advantages like a person might not get the problem of not having money any day, it has disadvantages more like a person can get any depression if he does not do any other leisure activities other than work and a person might get bored easily if he does not do any hobbies of his interests.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You address both attitudes and state a clear preference for hobbies and leisure, so the response is relevant to the question. The work-focused view is supported with points about earning money and being admired for diligence; the leisure-focused view includes avoiding boredom and possible anxiety or depression. However, these ideas are mostly asserted rather than explained with specific examples or evidence, and the claim that working regularly means someone “cannot be refrained from money” is unclear. Your opinion is stated in the introduction, but the conclusion mainly repeats the arguments instead of explaining why leisure should take priority or how work and personal interests might be balanced. Develop each main point with a concrete example and clearer reasoning to address the task more fully. The length requirement is met; eight words copied from the prompt were not counted.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a recognisable overall structure: an introduction, separate paragraphs for the two attitudes, and a conclusion. Signposting such as “To begin with,” “On the other hand,” and “To conclude” helps readers follow the broad contrast. However, progression within paragraphs is sometimes mechanical, with several points joined by “Furthermore” or “Moreover” rather than developed through clear cause-and-effect links. Repeated references to “a person” and “doing hobbies” also make the flow less natural, and “this” in the final body paragraph does not always point clearly to one idea. Organise each body paragraph around one central claim, then explain and illustrate it before moving to the next point; use referencing and transitions more precisely.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use enough topic-related vocabulary to communicate the main contrast, including “leisure activities,” “monetary problem,” “admiration,” and “depression.” However, the range is limited by repeated phrases such as “hobbies,” “personal interests,” and “a person,” and several word combinations are inaccurate or unnatural. For example, “cannot be refrained from money” does not express the intended idea, while “an admiration for others” and “get anxieties” are awkward choices. These errors sometimes make the reader pause to infer your meaning. Build a more precise range of collocations for employment, income, wellbeing, and free time, and check that each phrase expresses the intended relationship naturally.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and complex sentences, including clauses with “as,” “if,” and “although,” and the overall meaning is generally recoverable. However, complex structures are often faulty, and errors occur frequently enough to make some sentences difficult to process. For instance, “one of the advantages … is that a person cannot be refrained” has an incorrect passive construction, while “doing one self's hobbies” has a faulty possessive form. In “although doing work only and not doing any hobbies have advantages,” the subject and verb do not agree. There are also awkwardly constructed conditional sentences, such as “if one does not do any other activities other than work.” Practise accurate clause structure, agreement, and possessives, then proofread each sentence for a clear subject and verb.

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