Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-03

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)

Now a days city life is becoming more popular because the availability of everything a person needs. People are moving from villages or towns to cities to experience an easy life for example big cities got nice roads , parks , shopping malls , shops around every corner and every resource for a better lifestyle .

With the increasing number of people moving into big cities the is a rise in a big problem which is the decreasing in available space. There is an idea circulating which states that the best way to use remaining available space is to construct tall apartment blocks . At first it seems like a great idea that the apartments can accommodate 10 times the families a house could but I totally disagree with the thought of building tall apartment blocks because it does not make one's life easy instead it results in destroying the whole community living there . Imagine you moved to a city and brought an apartment in an apartment complex and every morning you wake up all you see is tall buildings around you where every corner looks the same . This idea seems more like a fever dream then an innovation to me.

Many countries like China , India , Thailand and Singapore looked forward to this idea and constructed large and tall apartment blocks which are completely empty now . One can search up these apartments on internet they are referred as the Ghost Towns. The constructing of these apartments resulted in loss of billions of dollars .

Every time people have choice between a house or an apartment they would always choose a house for independent living.

So in conclusion the government should look forward to the expansion of the cities rather than the construction of tall apartment blocks to save money resources and providing new houses to people moving to big cities.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses the prompt by taking a clear position against tall apartment blocks. However, the development of ideas is somewhat superficial. While you mention 'Ghost Towns' in countries like China and India, the argument lacks depth regarding the economic or social complexities of urban planning. The claim that people 'always' choose a house for independent living is an over-generalisation that weakens the argument. To reach a higher band, you should provide more nuanced reasoning, perhaps acknowledging the necessity of high-density housing in land-scarce cities while arguing for better design or alternative solutions, rather than dismissing the concept entirely based on anecdotal evidence.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organised into paragraphs, but the logical progression is occasionally disjointed. The transition between the introduction and the body paragraphs is abrupt. While you use some cohesive devices like 'At first' and 'In conclusion', the flow between sentences is sometimes mechanical. For instance, the jump from discussing 'Ghost Towns' to the preference for independent living feels disconnected. Improving the use of linking words and ensuring that each paragraph builds logically upon the previous one would enhance the overall coherence of your argument.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task but lacks the precision and variety required for higher bands. You rely on basic phrasing such as 'big cities', 'nice roads', and 'easy life'. There are also some awkward collocations and word choices, such as 'brought an apartment' (should be 'bought') and 'fever dream then an innovation' (should be 'than'). To improve, focus on using more sophisticated academic vocabulary and ensuring accurate word choice to convey your ideas with greater clarity and impact.

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 occasionally distract the reader. Examples include 'the is a rise' (should be 'there is'), 'the decreasing in available space' (should be 'a decrease'), and 'The constructing of these apartments' (should be 'The construction'). Punctuation is also inconsistent, particularly with spacing around commas. While these errors do not completely impede communication, they occur frequently enough to limit the score. Focusing on subject-verb agreement and article usage will help improve your accuracy.

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

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