Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-08-24

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)

Home is the place where a person can live and develop itself. Nowadays due to increase of population the homes are getting convert into apartment block. I agree with this to a larger extent.

Home is the very important factor for our livelihood. But due to the increase in the population the vast area which a society requires to build homes are getting converted to tall apartments. As a society occupies a large amount of land but when talking about tall apartments it just requires a small piece of land to accommodate large number of people while making efficient use of urban land. Building tall apartments has several benefits like providing shelter to larger population, saving of land, attracting infrastructure, proper facilities and comfort .

Nowadays, urbanization is at its peak, more and more agriculture land is getting converted to residential land due to increase in the population. It is very important to save land for agriculture as it is also a important factor for our livelihood. So it was planned to construct tall buildings by ignoring the construction of society that occupies large amount of land. By doing so people can get home to live and farmers can get land for agriculture. For example, a residential tower with dozens of floors can accommodate hundreds of families without requiring a large amount of land.

In conclusion, I strongly agree that tall apartments blocks are one of the most effective ways to provide sufficient housing in densely populated cities because they make efficient use of limited land.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses the prompt and maintains a clear position throughout. The main ideas—efficient land use and the preservation of agricultural land—are relevant and supported with a clear example of a residential tower. However, the development is somewhat repetitive, and the explanation of 'attracting infrastructure' is mentioned but not expanded upon. The essay covers all parts of the task, but the depth of analysis could be improved to reach a higher band. The argument is consistent, but the supporting points could be more varied to demonstrate a more sophisticated understanding of urban planning.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, with a clear introduction, body, and conclusion. There is a progression of ideas, moving from the necessity of housing to the benefits of vertical construction. However, the use of cohesive devices is somewhat mechanical and repetitive (e.g., 'due to the increase in the population' is used multiple times). Referencing is generally clear, but the transition between the second and third paragraphs feels slightly abrupt. Improving the variety of linking words and phrases would enhance the flow and coherence of the argument.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is adequate for the task but lacks range and precision. The student relies on basic terminology such as 'very important', 'large amount', and 'good'. There are some inaccuracies in word choice, such as 'homes are getting convert into apartment block' (should be 'converted into apartment blocks') and 'attracting infrastructure' (which is vague in this context). While the meaning is always clear, the student does not demonstrate the ability to use less common lexical items or idiomatic expressions effectively. Expanding the vocabulary to include more academic collocations would improve the score.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. However, there are frequent grammatical errors that occasionally distract the reader. Examples include 'develop itself' (should be 'develop themselves'), 'the vast area which a society requires' (awkward phrasing), and 'a important factor' (should be 'an important factor'). While these errors do not impede communication, they are persistent throughout the text. To improve, the student should focus on subject-verb agreement, the correct use of articles, and more accurate sentence construction to ensure a higher level of grammatical control.

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

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