Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Complete Catalyst · 2026-10-13

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)

In recent years, focusing on hobbies and leisure has become more important than jobs for some people, and other people say that interest in something else is very good for life. I feel it is good to maintain hobbies. This essay discusses the advantages and disadvantages of this trend before leading to a conclusion.

On the one hand, the first and most important advantage of this is that hobbies like playing cricket or football, and many more, are very good for our health. For instance, people play football regularly, but they do not do any other exercise; that is enough. As a result, people become healthier with outdoor activities. Another benefit is that people learn extra skills from their hobbies. For example, people learn cooking in their free time. As a result, people can become professional chefs in future.

On the other hand, the first disadvantage of this trend is that some people put more effort into their hobbies than their work. For example, people take leave from work to give time to their hobbies. Secondly, some people do not have time due to a busy schedule, but they find time by cutting sleep, which is not good for the sleep cycle. As a result, they go in depression or make stress of working on their hobbies, which is not good for their health.

In conclusion, looking at the advantages and disadvantages of the aforementioned trend, one can conclude that it is good to do, but only in free time, not during working time.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

You give a clear, relevant opinion that hobbies are valuable when kept outside working time, and you discuss benefits and drawbacks. The examples of sport, cooking, taking leave, and sacrificing sleep help address the topic. However, the response only partly fulfils the task because the two attitudes in the prompt are not fully explored: the view that work is the most important thing receives little direct discussion, while much of the essay treats hobbies as a general trend. Several points are also under-developed. For instance, explain how cooking might lead to professional work, or why prioritising a job can be beneficial. A more direct comparison of both attitudes, with fuller support for your position, would strengthen the response.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The essay has a coherent overall arrangement: an introduction, separate paragraphs for advantages and disadvantages, and a conclusion. Signposting such as “On the one hand,” “On the other hand,” and “In conclusion” makes the main stages easy to follow. Within paragraphs, examples generally follow the points they illustrate. However, the organisation is somewhat mechanical, with repeated patterns such as “For example” and “As a result,” and the introduction promises a discussion of a “trend” rather than clearly setting up the two attitudes in the question. Some links between ideas are not fully clear, particularly the move from cutting sleep to depression or work-related stress. Use more varied, precise connections and make the relationship between each claim and its explanation explicit.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

Your vocabulary is adequate for communicating the main ideas, and topic-related terms such as “hobbies,” “leisure,” “professional chefs,” and “busy schedule” are relevant. You also attempt phrases such as “maintain hobbies” and “sleep cycle,” showing some range beyond very basic wording. However, several expressions are imprecise or unnatural, including “interest in something else,” “go in depression,” and “make stress of working on their hobbies.” Repetition of “people,” “good,” and “as a result” also limits flexibility. Choose more precise collocations and vary repeated wording; for example, describe people as “prioritising leisure activities” or say that they “experience stress.” These improvements would make your meaning more natural and exact.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, including clauses introduced by “but,” “which,” and “that.” Most sentences communicate their intended meaning, and the paragraph structure helps the reader follow your argument. Some grammatical errors remain, but they rarely prevent understanding. For example, “people become healthier with outdoor activities” is structurally clear, while “they go in depression” has an incorrect grammatical pattern; “they may become depressed” would be more accurate. In “people learn cooking in their free time,” the verb pattern is awkward, and “learn to cook” is the natural construction. Continue practising verb patterns and clause construction, and check sentence punctuation and phrasing so that complex ideas are expressed more accurately.

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

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