Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-08-20

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 5.5)

The graph illustrates the number of jobs available in four different sectors of the US economy between 1960 and 2020.

Overall, employment in the retail and healthcare sectors increased significantly over the period. In contrast, the number of jobs in manufacturing and agriculture declined. While manufacturing remained one of the largest employment sectors for most of the period, healthcare became the leading sector by 2020. Agriculture, meanwhile, was consistently the smallest employer.

In 1960, approximately 15 million people were employed in the manufacturing sector. This figure peaked at 20 million in 1980 before declining steadily to around 13 million by 2020. Regarding agriculture, about 6 million jobs were available in 1960. The number then fell to 3 million in 1980 and remained stable until 2000, after which it decreased further to roughly 2 million in 2020.

On the other hand, the retail and healthcare sectors experienced considerable growth throughout the period. In 1960, there were around 6 million jobs in retail and only 2 million in healthcare. By 1980, these figures had risen to 10 million and 5 million respectively. Employment in both sectors continued to increase, reaching approximately 15 million in retail and 16 million in healthcare by 2020.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 4.0

The response does not address the task question, which requires an opinion on building tall apartment blocks in large cities. Instead, the essay discusses a graph about employment sectors. This irrelevant content prevents the student from achieving a high score in Task Achievement, as the primary aim of the task is not met.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0

The coherence and cohesion of the response are compromised due to the off-topic nature of the content. There are clear paragraphs, each focusing on different sectors, which helps structure the response. However, the lack of a clear answer or argument regarding the prompt affects the logical flow and prevents effective connection between ideas related to housing.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The lexical resource in this writing sample shows some good vocabulary, particularly in economic terms, such as "employment," "retail," and "healthcare." However, because the student writes about an unrelated topic, the lexical choices do not contribute to fulfilling the task requirements. This affects the perceived range and appropriateness of vocabulary.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 7.0

While the grammatical range is quite competent, with varied sentence structures and accurate tense usage, the content remains predominantly irrelevant to the task question. Phrases like "the number of jobs in manufacturing and agriculture declined" showcase good grammar, but the overall focus detracts from receiving a higher band score in this area due to the off-topic discussion.

Overall feedback

You have demonstrated a solid understanding of grammatical structures and vocabulary related to economic terms, which is commendable. However, it is crucial to stay on topic and directly respond to the task question. In your future essays, ensure that you address the prompt clearly and build your arguments around it. More careful planning could help you structure your essays better and maintain focus. Practice writing on a variety of topics to improve your ability to generate relevant ideas quickly.

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

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