Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-01

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 often argued that the superior way to issue sufficient homes in urban cities is to build large apartment blocks. I strongly concur with this viewpoint because it saves a significant amount of space and expenses.

The primary reason why I agree with this perspective is that by the expanded development of the tall buildings in the urban areas, these can be beneficial in providing sufficient proportion of green spaces around the apartments and could be the home for numerous amount of citizens. This is because due to the construction of tall buildings, these are modified in the structure or elevated as these can be the home for a great extent of individuals leaving the space for the greenery such as various kind of plants and flowers. A good instance can be the numerous apartment blocks in the buildings of big cities. Consequently, there will be significant space for individuals.

Another key reason for my position is that it can be advantageous in the form of lower expenses for the residents of big buildings. This is because of the great extent of the amount of occupants, there could be various discounts for the flats takers. Consequently, these factors can contribute towards the lesser amount of rental expenses. Moreover, there could be the greater excess of the facilities for instance, effortlessly convenience of transportation around the flats.

To conclude, I firmly believe that by the expansion of the tall buildings in urban areas, these can contribute in saving expenses on rents of the flats and can help in issuing more green spaces around the buildings.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

The response addresses the prompt by expressing a clear position in favor of building tall apartment blocks to solve housing shortages. However, the development of ideas remains limited and repetitive. For instance, the argument regarding green spaces is circular and under-developed, relying on vague statements like 'these are modified in the structure' rather than exploring concrete urban planning concepts. Similarly, the points regarding rental expenses lack concrete support or precise economic explanation. While the main stance is maintained throughout the essay, the supporting arguments require much fuller extension and more specific examples to move beyond superficial assertions.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The essay displays a basic overall arrangement with clear paragraph breaks for the introduction, body paragraphs, and conclusion. However, the progression of ideas is hindered by repetitive phrasing and inadequate cohesive devices. Transitional phrases such as 'This is because due to the construction' and 'Consequently' are overused or clumsily integrated, creating a mechanical flow. Referencing is also occasionally unclear, as seen when pronouns like 'these' and 'it' refer back ambiguously to multiple preceding nouns. To achieve higher cohesion, the writer needs to employ a wider variety of linking words naturally and ensure that paragraph transitions guide the reader smoothly from one point to the next.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

The vocabulary used is limited and frequently repetitive, relying heavily on basic terms such as 'big cities,' 'tall buildings,' and 'expenses.' There are noticeable errors in word choice and collocation that reveal a restricted range, such as 'issue sufficient homes' instead of 'provide' or 'build,' and 'flats takers' instead of 'tenants' or 'buyers.' Phrases like 'numerous amount of citizens' also demonstrate an imprecise grasp of countable versus uncountable modifiers. While the meaning remains mostly discernible, the vocabulary lacks the precision, flexibility, and less common lexical items required to discuss urban housing effectively at higher levels.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but many of the attempts at complexity result in faulty grammar and awkward syntax. There are frequent errors in clause structure, preposition use, and word forms within grammatical patterns, such as 'by the expanded development of the tall buildings' and 'effortlessly convenience of transportation.' Articles and plurals are also handled inconsistently throughout the text. These errors require the reader to occasionally pause and parse the meaning, though they do not completely obscure the core message. Expanding control over complex sentence patterns and reducing basic structural errors will significantly strengthen this aspect.

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