Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

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

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 choose work as the most crucial part of their life. While, other people prefer pursuing their hobbies and leisure interests than their jobs. In my opinion, one should always have an balanced approach toward life. I will discuss both the views in following paragraph.

To start with, work is important for every individual. Working in any field not only provide financial stability but also assist in maintaining a disciplined lifestyle. For instance, work streamline one's habit on daily basis leading a meaningful life. Having a goal in life give people hope and purpose to get better day by day, hence improving the skills and individual personality. Moreover, finance being another important aspect of work. Financial stability can aid in having a comfortable lifestyle, additionally urging even more towards improving skills and achieving better position at work.

Similarly, hobbies and leisure is equally important for the betterment of individual health and safety. For a healthy lifestyle one should always focus on things that can make the individual cheerful and positive. Putting efforts on these activities can lead to future potential outcomes. For example, if any individual take a hobby such as sports very seriously can give a tremendous future support and reputation. Cricketer of highest skill get paid well along with the popularity and respect in the society.

In conclusion, both work and hobbies can lead to potential life growth. Work and hobbies both can discipline one's life and bring stability with finance. In my opinion balancing work and hobby can lead to a better life and great futuristic opportunity. Every individual should focus in maintaining a balance to gain from each aspect of life.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You discuss both attitudes and state a clear preference for balance, so the response addresses the main parts of the prompt. The work paragraph gives relevant reasons—financial stability, routine, and purpose—and the sports example shows how a hobby can also bring income and recognition. However, the discussion is only partly developed: the hobby paragraph focuses mainly on sport as a route to career success, rather than explaining the value of leisure for people whose hobbies remain recreational. The conclusion repeats the balanced position but adds little support. To strengthen the response, explain each attitude more fully and make the comparison between work and leisure clearer. The response meets the stated length requirement; the eight words copied from the prompt are excluded from the count.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

The response has a recognisable structure, with an introduction, separate paragraphs for work and hobbies, and a conclusion. This makes the main line of discussion easy to identify. However, progression within paragraphs is sometimes weak: several work-related benefits are listed without showing how they connect, and the hobby paragraph moves quickly from wellbeing to future outcomes and then to professional cricket. Linking phrases such as “To start with” and “Similarly” help signal stages, but some transitions feel mechanical or do not express the relationship precisely. The conclusion also repeats ideas from the introduction. Improve cohesion by organising each paragraph around one central claim, then explaining and illustrating it, and use clearer references and transitions between points.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use enough topic-related vocabulary to communicate the main ideas, including “financial stability,” “disciplined lifestyle,” “purpose,” and “popularity and respect.” There are also attempts at more formal phrasing, such as “potential outcomes” and “meaningful life.” However, the range is limited by repeated general words such as “important,” “individual,” and “life,” while several combinations are unnatural or imprecise, including “future support,” “futuristic opportunity,” and “betterment of individual health and safety.” These choices sometimes make the intended meaning less clear. Aim for more precise collocations and vary repeated terms; for example, distinguish between leisure’s benefits for wellbeing and the possibility of turning a hobby into a profession.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentence forms, including a contrast in the opening and clauses introduced by “not only…but also” and “if.” However, the range is limited, and errors occur frequently enough to make some sentences awkward or difficult to follow. Examples include “While, other people…” (an incomplete contrast structure), “work…not only provide” (subject–verb agreement), “Having a goal…give” (agreement), and “if any individual take” (verb form). Articles and sentence construction also need attention, as in “an balanced approach” and “Moreover, finance being another important aspect of work.” Practise checking agreement, articles, and complete sentence structure, then vary clause patterns while keeping each sentence clear.

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