Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-08-22

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)

Over the past few decades, the issue of homes in large cities has attracted considerable attention. While some individuals argue that tall apartment blocks are paramount, others hold a contrasting view. I completely agree with the idea that building tall communities provides sufficient housing for the public. This essay will present several arguments to support my viewpoint.

The primary reason why I hold this view is large apartments provides sufficient number of houses for the public to live. This is largely due to the fact that morenumber of people going for jobs in urban areas has increased drastically. For instance, according to a recent report by GHMC there is no houses for the people near the domain area in Hyderabad, it was found that individual houses occupied the majority of spaces so building tall communities or apartments will provide sufficient housing in urban areas like Bangalore and Hyderabad Thus, this clearly reinforces the idea that building tall apartments is better option.

Another compelling reason in favor of my stance is that apartment blocks improve easy access to the people who are working near the offices provide easy access This suggests that they can save lot more time by escaping traffic for example, many experts believe that apartment often provides cheap staying opportunities

In conclusion, I firmly maintain that building large apartment blocks provides better housing. This is primarily because they nurture creativity and support emotional well-being. Given these points, it is advisable that educational policymakers integrate comprehensive art programs into the standard curriculum.

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response5.5
Coherence and Cohesion5.5
Lexical Resource5.5
Grammatical Range and Accuracy5.5
Overall5.5

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The essay addresses the prompt by taking a clear position in favor of tall apartment blocks. However, the development of ideas is inconsistent. While the first body paragraph provides a relevant example regarding urban housing in India, the second paragraph is repetitive and lacks depth. Crucially, the conclusion introduces entirely irrelevant information regarding 'educational policymakers' and 'art programs,' which has no connection to the housing topic. This indicates a failure to maintain a consistent focus on the task requirements throughout the response. To improve, ensure that all supporting arguments and the conclusion directly relate to the specific prompt provided.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organized into paragraphs, but the logical flow is frequently disrupted by grammatical errors and awkward phrasing. Cohesive devices are used, such as 'The primary reason' and 'Another compelling reason,' but they are sometimes followed by sentences that lack clarity or proper punctuation. The transition between ideas is mechanical, and the final paragraph is disconnected from the rest of the essay due to the introduction of off-topic content. Paragraphing is present, but the internal structure of the second body paragraph is weak, making it difficult for the reader to follow the argument smoothly.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task but lacks precision and variety. There is some repetition of basic terms like 'sufficient' and 'housing.' Phrases such as 'morenumber of people' and 'cheap staying opportunities' are unnatural and reflect a limited command of collocation. While the student attempts to use some academic vocabulary, the errors in word choice occasionally impede the flow of ideas. To reach a higher band, the student should focus on learning more sophisticated collocations and ensuring that words are used in their correct context rather than relying on generic phrasing.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The essay contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors that affect readability. Examples include subject-verb agreement issues ('large apartments provides'), missing articles ('there is no houses'), and run-on sentences lacking proper punctuation. These errors are persistent throughout the text. While the meaning is generally conveyed, the high frequency of basic grammatical slips prevents the essay from reaching a higher band. Improving control over basic sentence construction and proofreading for subject-verb agreement would significantly enhance the quality of the writing.

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

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