Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Complete Catalyst · 2026-10-09

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)

Both work and leisure Time is important, But maintaining a balance between them is the best approach.

The people that regard the work is the most important thing in life i strongly agree this statement because Work gives us the financial freedom and we meet the daily needs. Work helps us to gain experiece, acquire skills and better development in our career. A successful career improve the quality of life and increase our confidence and gain self esteem. By Work, We have a routein life and i Think routein is the best thing to become disclipned in life.

For example, A teacher may devote most of his time to work because he wants to improve teaching skills And become financially independent.

On the other hand, Some individuals believe that hobbies and leisure activities deserve greater attention because due to work and daily routein we all feel stressed So to feel relax we must have other activities and hobbies. It releases the stress and improve the well being of people.

It also improve relationships with other people the reason behind this is it allows us to spend quality time with friends and other people.

Spending free time with ourself also help to think and approach things differenly.

for example, if a person enjoys travelling may priortise holidays beacuse exploring new places provides happiness and memorable experiences

.

In conclusion, Some people priortise their work while some prefer leisure activities, I believe both are essential. The key to a satisfying life is to achieve professional success without sacrificing their happiness and personal relationships.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You address both attitudes and give a clear personal view: the opening and conclusion support balancing work with leisure. The work paragraph offers relevant reasons, including financial independence, skill development and confidence, while the leisure paragraph explains stress relief, relationships and personal reflection. These points meet the task, but some are asserted rather than fully explained. For instance, the teacher example illustrates commitment to work but does not show its effects or consider possible costs; the travel example could explain more clearly how leisure contributes to a satisfying life. Develop each main idea with a specific consequence or comparison, and make the relationship between the two attitudes and your preferred balance more explicit throughout.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, separate paragraphs for the two attitudes, and a conclusion. Transitions such as “On the other hand” and “In conclusion” help readers follow the discussion. However, progression within paragraphs is sometimes loose: the work paragraph moves from finances to skills, confidence and routine without showing how these points connect, and the leisure paragraph shifts quickly from stress to relationships and reflection. Some linking is also mechanical, particularly repeated sentence openings with “It” and “For example.” Use clearer topic sentences and connect each supporting point to the paragraph’s main claim; vary referencing so it is always clear what “It” refers to.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use a relevant range of vocabulary for the topic, including “financial freedom,” “acquire skills,” “self esteem,” “well being,” and “quality time.” These expressions help communicate both career-related and personal benefits. However, spelling and word-choice errors are noticeable, and some combinations are unnatural, such as “feel relax,” “better development in our career,” and “routein life.” Capitalisation is also inconsistent, which affects the presentation of vocabulary. Aim for accurate, natural collocations and check spelling carefully; using a smaller number of well-controlled phrases will make your ideas sound clearer and more precise.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentence forms, including a reason clause beginning “because” and a conditional example beginning “if.” Meaning is generally recoverable, but errors in sentence construction and agreement occur across the response. For example, “The people that regard the work is the most important thing” has an unclear clause structure, while “A successful career improve” and “It releases the stress and improve” show subject–verb agreement problems. Articles and pronouns also need attention, as in “spend free time with ourself.” Punctuation and capitalisation within sentences are inconsistent. Practise building accurate subject–verb patterns first, then extend them with subordinate clauses and check each sentence for agreement and complete structure.

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