Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-19

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)

World's population is continuously rising while the resources are being depleted. People usually migrate to the developed areas to access good opportunities. Due to which it is believed that building tall apartment blocks in large cities a better way of accommodating people. .I partly agree with this because of the increased demand of housing. Horizontal buildings takes less space and can accommodate more residents than vertical ones in a limited area. However, they are not sufficient on their own as other factors also needs to be considered like infrastructure, services, facilities etc that could be difficult to manage in an overcrowded building. .I party agree because ,ore apartments can be built on a relatively small piece of land. and this idea is particularly useful in large, densely populated cities.

Residents can live closer to workplaces, schools and public transport. For example, In cities like Karachi, Lahore or Islamabad, where land in developed areas is limited and housing demand is increasing. This approach would fulfill the existing demands. .But there are some disadvantages and consequences too. Relying on such buildings may result in the compromise of the facilities being provided. As quality services are not available in such crowded areas. Apart from that, some people may prefer a separate quite space with a lawn or garden so that they can spend quality time with their kids and family. Such families won't prioritize living in taller buildings. As alot of people will be concentrated in one area, that would also cause increase in traffic and public transport. .In conclusion, taller apartment block do provide huge residencies but they come with the negative impacts too, so we need to keep that mind that it is a possible solution but not the best solution.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The student addresses the task by presenting a clear position ('I partly agree with this') and discussing both the benefits of tall apartment blocks, such as accommodating more residents on limited land, and the drawbacks, such as infrastructure strain and preference for separate spaces with gardens. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited and repetitive in places, particularly around the discussion of overcrowding and public transport. The response touches upon relevant examples like cities in Pakistan, but these are underdeveloped. The main parts of the prompt are covered, but the extension of ideas lacks depth, placing it comfortably in Band 6.0.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0

The response presents an overall coherent argument, but the paragraphing and mechanical cohesion are flawed. There are strange punctuation issues and fragmented paragraph structures, such as standalone sentences starting with full stops in the middle of arguments (e.g., '.I partly agree with this...' and '.I party agree because...'). Cohesive devices are sometimes mechanical or used inaccurately ('Due to which', 'Apart from that'). While there is a progression of ideas from agreement to disagreement and a conclusion, the lack of standard paragraphing and faulty cohesive referencing pull this criterion down to a Band 5.0.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The student demonstrates an adequate vocabulary for the task, attempting less common lexical items such as 'accommodating', 'densely populated', and 'consequences'. However, there are noticeable word choice and collocation errors, such as 'Horizontal buildings takes less space' (referring to vertical vs horizontal in a confusing manner), 'quite space' instead of 'quiet space', and spelling or typo errors like 'party' instead of 'partly' and 'alot'. The range is sufficient to communicate the main points, but these inaccuracies place the response at a Band 5.5.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, with conditional and subordinate clauses appearing throughout the essay (e.g., 'Relying on such buildings may result in...'). However, there are frequent grammatical errors and awkward phrasing, such as fragment sentences ('As quality services are not available in such crowded areas.'), subject-verb agreement issues ('other factors also needs to be considered'), and punctuation errors. These errors occasionally cause slight difficulty for the reader, aligning with the Band 5.0 descriptors.

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