Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-22

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)

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.

It is often argued by some people that to solve accommodation issue in busy cities, the vertical construction should be build. Some might disagree with that. However, due to large accommodation in a small piece of land, its cost effectiveness and easy administrative capabilities i strongly agree with this statement.

There are multiple benefits associated with heighted apartments. The foremost one is the capability to provide large some of accommodation by using a small piece of land. As the big cities are usually over crowded for multiple reasons including offices, industries etc. and make the land expensive and rare. Take an example of the Deans Heights one of the flagship project in Peshawar, Pakistan according to its official report published on their website, it can accommodate up to 172 families at a time. Thus the vertical concept of accommodation can provide large living areas in busy cities using a lesser area.

Similarly, creating building is a cost effective for most of the families as they will only buy a specific portion or apartment according their family need and has not to bare all the expenses of buying land, building for living etc. For example by taking a similar example of Deans Heights its one apartment for 4 people can cost around 75 lakh Pakistani rupees. However, building a horizontal living house for such family in similar place has an estimated expense of around 1 caror and 85 lakhs Pakistani Rupees. Thus tall apartment is quite cost effective.

Nevertheless, vertical buildings are easy to administrate and all the documentations and census and other activities can be handle easily in comparison with wide spread horizontal houses. Thus easy administration capability also make it favorite for most of the people and stakeholders.

To sum up, it is obvious and i agree that tall apartments are one of the better way to provide enough living spaces as it not only taking a small land and providing large accommodation but can easily be administrate at low cost.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The student addresses all parts of the task by presenting a clear position agreeing with the statement and supporting it with reasons and examples. The main arguments—space efficiency, cost-effectiveness, and ease of administration—are relevant and extended throughout the body paragraphs. For instance, the example of Deans Heights in Peshawar provides concrete context to support the claim about space-saving and cost differences. However, the development tends to rely on generalisations and occasional repetition of ideas. The conclusion restates the position clearly. Overall, the response meets the requirements for a Band 6.5 or solid Band 6, showing a well-considered stance and adequate task fulfillment, though further extension of the economic and social arguments would elevate the score.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is divided into an introduction, three body paragraphs, and a conclusion, demonstrating a clear overall structure and logical progression. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate distinct points, such as land efficiency, cost effectiveness, and administration. Cohesive devices are employed, including transitional markers like 'Similarly', 'Nevertheless', and 'To sum up'. However, some referencing and cohesion are occasionally mechanical or slightly awkward, such as 'For example by taking a similar example of Deans Heights'. Additionally, punctuation errors around linking words occasionally disrupt the flow. Despite these minor issues, the progression of ideas is logical and easy to follow, fitting the Band 6 descriptor well.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, attempting less common terms such as 'cost effectiveness', 'administration capabilities', and 'vertical construction'. However, there are numerous lexical and collocational inaccuracies throughout the text, such as 'accommodation issue' instead of 'accommodation issues', 'heighted apartments' instead of 'high-rise apartments', 'large some' instead of 'large sum', and 'creating building' instead of 'constructing buildings'. Additionally, local currency terms like 'lakh' and 'caror' are used without broader global contextualisation, though they remain understandable. Spelling and word choice errors do not impede overall communication, placing this response firmly in the Band 6 category.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, using conditional and relative clauses. There is, however, a high frequency of grammatical errors, particularly regarding verb forms, articles, and agreement. Examples include 'vertical construction should be build' instead of 'built', 'big cities are usually over crowded', and 'has not to bare' instead of 'does not have to bear'. Punctuation is also inconsistent, and capitalization errors occur (such as lowercase 'i'). While these errors are frequent, they rarely impede the reader's understanding of the main ideas. This balance of attempted complex structures alongside persistent local errors is characteristic of a Band 5.5 or Band 6 performance.

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