Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-05

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)

It is argued that, the best approach to provide as my houses in the big cities is through building high apartment blocks. I strongly believe that, it could save large number of areas and numerous people could live across high market places for their jobs and educational purposes.

In large cities, building apartments that are tall can save large spaces around them because the areas in busy cities are much conserved than small towns. Many people live there for different purposes such as, for business, education, and for a job. They need places for settlement, so they can continue their journeys. For instance, large and high buildings mostly occupy by the number of people that could reduce the need of building a new apartment. Consequently, These types of blocks can save a large area of land that could be better used somewhere else.

Additionally, tall apartments could give a chance to the people who wants to have a residency around the good market place. Due to this, Many individuals can easily find a job nearby to their homes. Therefore, they do not have to worry about commute. For example, many students mostly live nearby their universities in the hostels because of this they easily manage to live in a building along their studies. So if the hostels are not designed in such a way then it could be a problem for the students and as well as for employees.

In conclusion, constructing building in such a manner could save large number of areas in big towns and beside this, it can help numerous individuals to live across their educational and job sectors.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses the prompt by taking a clear position in favor of tall apartment blocks. The ideas are relevant, focusing on land conservation and proximity to employment and education. However, the development is somewhat repetitive, particularly in the second and third paragraphs, where the benefits are restated rather than expanded upon with deeper analysis or varied examples. While the position is consistent, the supporting arguments lack the depth required for a higher band, as the reasoning remains quite general and lacks specific, nuanced exploration of the potential drawbacks or alternative solutions to provide a more balanced perspective.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, each with a clear focus. Cohesive devices such as 'Additionally,' 'Therefore,' and 'In conclusion' are used to link ideas. However, the flow within paragraphs is sometimes mechanical, and the use of referencing is occasionally unclear, such as in the phrase 'because of this they easily manage to live in a building along their studies.' The progression of ideas is generally easy to follow, but the transitions between sentences could be more sophisticated to improve the overall flow and coherence of the argument.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is adequate for the task but lacks the range and precision expected at higher bands. There is frequent repetition of basic terms like 'large,' 'big,' 'buildings,' and 'apartments.' Some word choices are slightly unnatural or imprecise, such as 'high market places' or 'continue their journeys' (when referring to living in a city). While the meaning is always clear, the student relies on a limited set of vocabulary and does not demonstrate the ability to use less common lexical items or idiomatic collocations effectively to convey more nuanced meaning.

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, while not impeding communication, are noticeable. Examples include 'as my houses' (likely meant 'as many houses'), 'areas in busy cities are much conserved' (incorrect word choice), and 'mostly occupy by the number of people' (passive voice error). Punctuation is also inconsistent, with unnecessary commas appearing after 'argued that' and 'believe that'. The control over complex structures is limited, and the frequency of errors prevents the essay from reaching a higher band.

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

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.