Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-08-31

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)

My opinion is that the most convenient way to make more housings available for people is definitely by increasing the number of availabe space by expandings builidings in length. As there is a continuous growth in the population and in order to face the real life problems caused by this is providing people with better and more accomodations. Since availiable area is being utilized without a resisting force, we have to find the better options in already present housing areas. A big example of it comes directly from my neighbourhood, they lacked money to buy houses for every son so they planned to utilize the available money for the renovation of their house. This even stopped the bad blood between them. Just like this, people around the world faces similar situations so the development of tall building blocks is the right solution fot the mean time. But just as everything has two sides , it raises some certain issues. The most prominient issues are that tall builidings causes the blockage of sunlight coming to lower areas and the ever-increasing prices of housings. People find it life draining to pay their loans and installment payments, which causes a direct effect on their other daily life neccessities and mental exhuastion. A better example of this lies in our very own community where people spend their whole lives just to get a small piece of land. My conclusion is that no matter the drawbacks, the installation of tall apartment blocks is the solution for the most challenging issues of modern life.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response addresses the prompt by taking a clear position in favor of tall apartment blocks. However, the development of ideas is somewhat superficial. The example provided regarding a neighborhood dispute over family inheritance is not clearly linked to the broader urban planning issue of housing density, making the argument feel anecdotal rather than analytical. While the counter-arguments regarding sunlight and costs are mentioned, they are not fully explored or balanced against the benefits in a sophisticated way. To reach a higher band, you should focus on more relevant, macro-level arguments such as land-use efficiency, infrastructure strain, or environmental impact rather than personal anecdotes.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organized into a single block of text, which significantly hinders coherence. Paragraphing is essential in IELTS writing to separate the introduction, body paragraphs, and conclusion. While there are some cohesive devices used, such as 'Since', 'But', and 'In my conclusion', the flow between sentences is occasionally disjointed. The transition between the benefits of tall buildings and the drawbacks is abrupt. To improve, you must use clear paragraph breaks and ensure that each paragraph focuses on a single, well-developed central idea, using a wider variety of linking words to connect your arguments logically.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, but there are several instances of awkward phrasing and word choice errors. For example, 'expandings builidings in length' is not a natural collocation; 'vertical expansion' or 'increasing building height' would be more precise. Phrases like 'bad blood' and 'life draining' are slightly informal for an academic essay. There are also recurring spelling errors, such as 'availabe', 'accomodations', 'availiable', 'prominient', and 'neccessities'. To achieve a higher score, focus on using more precise academic vocabulary and proofreading for spelling accuracy.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The essay contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but grammatical accuracy is inconsistent. There are frequent errors in subject-verb agreement and pluralization, such as 'people around the world faces' (face) and 'tall builidings causes' (cause). Punctuation is also problematic, particularly with the placement of commas and spaces. While the meaning is generally clear, these persistent errors interrupt the flow of the text. To improve, focus on mastering basic subject-verb agreement and ensuring that your complex sentences are constructed with correct grammatical subordination.

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