Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-08-12
IELTS Writing Task 2 question
The best way to provide enough homes in large cities is to build tall apartment blocks.
To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement?
Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.
Student answer (Band 5.0)
Some people argue that the best solution to provide citizens with sufficient accommodations in metropolises is to build skyscrapers, while others suggest that they are not beneficial. Although, there are arguments on both sides, I disagree the statement of building towering apartments.
On the one hand, the majority of large cities have marginal area to build any accommodations. As a result, they have no decision and construct towing ones rather than the 2-story house or 3. However, the skyscrapers have several benefits. For instance, they stay at tiny areas and give community a large number of homes, also can contain numerous access to services in one place. So, it can be the best solution for some countries.
On the other hand, the 5-story and 3-story houses are useful because in which there may suffer from any natural disasters such as tsunami, landslide, typhoon and flood. Besides this, the another supporting factor is the public can find what they want to get. Basically, It might be also easier to delivers who always get lost between towering apartments and the citizens can enjoy the nature by seeing breath-taking places, heritages, mountains and rivers in their leisure times. The another essential result is the green areas can be expanded greatly in lower buildings.
In conclusion, it can be concluded that however, building the skyscrapers in large cities have some benefits, the drawbacks outnumber the good ones. Therefore, I support the view that providing the citizens with a fewer-story houses overtake the towering ones.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0
The response addresses the prompt by taking a clear position against the use of tall apartment blocks. However, the development of ideas is inconsistent. While you mention benefits like space efficiency, the counter-arguments regarding natural disasters and 'getting lost' are somewhat illogical or lack sufficient depth to be persuasive. The argument that lower buildings are safer from tsunamis or landslides is not well-supported by urban planning principles, and the claim about 'getting lost' is weak. To improve, focus on more substantial arguments such as social isolation, infrastructure strain, or the psychological impact of high-density living. The conclusion is clear, but the overall development remains somewhat superficial.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The essay is organised into clear paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the structure. You use transition signals like 'On the one hand' and 'In conclusion' to guide the reader. However, the flow between sentences is sometimes mechanical, and the logical progression within paragraphs is occasionally disrupted by awkward phrasing, such as 'the another supporting factor' or 'the another essential result'. Referencing is sometimes unclear, particularly in the second body paragraph where the connection between the ideas (natural disasters and getting lost) is disjointed. Improving the use of cohesive devices to link ideas more fluidly would enhance the overall coherence.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.0
The vocabulary range is adequate for the task but lacks precision. You use some relevant terms like 'metropolises', 'accommodations', and 'skyscrapers', but there are several instances of awkward word choice and collocation errors. For example, 'marginal area' should be 'limited space', and 'towing ones' is an incorrect usage of the word 'towering'. Phrases like 'contain numerous access to services' are unnatural. To reach a higher band, focus on using more precise collocations and avoiding repetitive phrasing. Expanding your range to include more academic vocabulary related to urban development would also be beneficial.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The essay contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but accuracy is inconsistent. There are frequent errors in grammar and punctuation that occasionally impede clarity, such as 'I disagree the statement' (missing a preposition) and 'in which there may suffer from' (incorrect relative clause structure). Subject-verb agreement and article usage are also problematic, for instance, 'the another supporting factor'. While the meaning is generally understandable, the high frequency of grammatical slips prevents the essay from reaching a higher band. Focusing on sentence construction and proofreading for basic errors will help improve your score.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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