Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-02

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)

For most of my childhood, i have lived in a area where high-rise buildings were not present, however, that is not the case now. It is true that one of the best ways to provide enough homes in large cities is to build tall apartment blocks , but , it is not always necessary because it causes a disbalance in society. For example, in Mumbai , there many tall apartment blocks but ,so are there that many slums. If tall buildings are built throughout the city then there will be no privacy as one building would be built after the other. From my personal experience , tall apartments have restricted the nature flow of breeze in the house and air getting trapped between these buildings, making it more temperature around that area more warmer. Another fact that is necessary to be considered if large cites built tall apartment blocks is that not all people can afford these apartments. Developing countries like India , where majority of population suffers from poverty will not be able to afford these apartments. Thus resulting in increase of slums in those areas. Further , it would also disrupt nature. Building all apartment blocks would resulting in cutting down trees and lack of plants would lead to global warming and increasing emission of carbon dioxide. However , there are some merits for tall apartment blocks. Convenience for the people and development of the city for two facts for apartments. But, all in all are would disagree with the statement given above.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

Your response addresses all parts of the task by presenting a clear position that you disagree with the statement, while acknowledging some merits. You cover relevant ideas such as urban crowding, privacy, environmental disruption, and socio-economic factors like affordability in developing countries. However, some ideas are more fully developed than others, which prevents the essay from reaching a higher band. For instance, your point about Mumbai and slums is presented clearly and supported with an example, whereas points like 'convenience for the people' are very brief and under-developed. To move into higher bands, every main idea needs to be extended and supported with fully articulated explanations and specific, well-rounded examples throughout the entire response.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.5

Your essay has a coherent overall arrangement and you attempt to guide the reader through your arguments using cohesive devices such as 'For example', 'Another fact', and 'However'. However, the organisation of your text is heavily impacted by the lack of clear paragraphing. You place almost the entire essay into a single block of text rather than dividing it into an introduction, well-structured body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Additionally, some referencing and cohesive links are mechanical or faulty, such as the abrupt transition 'are would disagree', which disrupts the logical flow and progression. To achieve a higher band, you must organise your ideas into clear, distinct paragraphs and use a wider, more flexible range of cohesive devices without overusing repetitive transitional phrases.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully attempting less common vocabulary items such as 'disbalance', 'afford', and 'global warming'. However, there are noticeable limitations and inaccuracies in word choice, collocation, and word formation that place your writing at this level. For example, phrases like 'nature flow of breeze', 'more warmer', and 'all apartment blocks' contain word-formation and collocation errors. Furthermore, there are awkward phrasings such as 'two facts for apartments'. While these lexical errors do not seriously impede communication, they show that your control over less common vocabulary is still developing. To improve, you should focus on precision in word choice and ensure that you use natural collocations suitable for academic writing.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You demonstrate a limited range of structures, relying primarily on simple sentences alongside a few attempts at complex forms. Your writing contains frequent errors in grammar and punctuation that can occasionally cause difficulty for the reader. For example, there are issues with articles and determiners ('in a area', 'majority of population'), punctuation errors with spacing around commas ('blocks , but , it'), subject-verb agreement ('so are there that many slums'), and prepositional use within grammatical patterns ('temperature around that area more warmer'). Your attempts at complex sentences are often faulty, as seen in awkward clauses like 'Another fact that is necessary to be considered if large cites built tall apartment blocks is that...'. To reach the next band, you need to produce a better mix of complex sentence forms with improved accuracy and tighter control over punctuation.

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.