Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-03

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)

There is no doubt that building tall apartment blocks is one of the best ways to provide enough homes to poeple in large cities. I strongly agree with this statement that buidling tall apartments which consume less land, is beneficial.

First of all, we all know that with the growing population it has become really difficult to accomodate people in bigger cities. Additionally, urbanization has also made it challanging for the land owners to build apartments which cover major part of land. It is best strategy to build apartments that are tall and can provide residence to more people. For example, in karachi, which is one of the most populated cities of Pakistan is using this startegy to provide shelter to people who move in for several reasons.

Secondly, building such type of apartments could generate more capital. For example instead of using more space, it is better to build two tall buildings in the same hectors of land. Eventually, more people could be accomodated in two buildings. Alongwith this, it could also be advantageous for tenants to get place to live while paying less rent. For instance, the people living on ground floors have to pay more rent as compared to ones living on upper stories of building.

All in all, I strongly agree with the suggestion of building tall apartments, as it is one of the best plans to facile people looking for cost effective places to reside. Meanwhile, it is also beneficial for the owners to earn handful while using the same piece of land and providing residence to more people.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

The response addresses all parts of the task by presenting a clear position throughout in strong agreement with building tall apartment blocks. Relevant ideas are introduced, such as the benefits of efficient land usage and capital generation, meeting the expectations for a moderate task achievement level. However, some ideas remain under-developed or somewhat generalized. For instance, the example regarding Karachi is brief and lacks sufficient elaboration to fully support the argument. Additionally, the point about rental prices on different floors is not fully explored in relation to the main prompt. To reach a higher level, the writer needs to extend supporting examples with deeper explanations and more specific details that directly connect urban density solutions to housing availability.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The essay presents a coherent overall arrangement with a clear position maintained from the introduction to the conclusion. Paragraphing is used sufficiently to structure the response, grouping ideas logically into an introduction, body paragraphs focusing on distinct arguments, and a final summary. Cohesive devices are employed to connect ideas, such as "First of all," "Additionally," and "Secondly." However, cohesion is at times mechanical or somewhat repetitive, and referencing within sentences can occasionally feel abrupt. To improve further and achieve a more fluid progression of ideas, the writer should employ a wider variety of subtle cohesive ties and ensure smoother transitions between sentences and paragraphs without relying on formulaic transition markers.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully communicating central ideas about urbanization, accommodation, and land usage. There are clear attempts to incorporate less common vocabulary, such as "urbanization," "accommodate," and "cost effective." However, noticeable errors in spelling, word form, and word choice are present throughout the text, including "poeple," "buidling," "accomodate," "challanging," "startegy," and awkward phrasing like "earn handful." These errors do not seriously impede overall communication, but they restrict the score because they reflect limitations in lexical precision and accuracy. To progress, the writer must focus on careful proofreading to eliminate spelling mistakes and expand control over collocations and word forms.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The essay demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, attempting structures such as relative clauses and conditional elements. There are some errors in grammar and punctuation, including missing articles, minor agreement slips, and preposition usage within patterns, such as "in the same hectors of land" instead of "on the same hectares." Despite these errors, sentence structures are generally understandable, and they rarely impede communication. The presence of both accurate and flawed complex forms places the grammar firmly at this level. To achieve a higher band, the writer needs to increase the frequency of error-free complex sentences and exercise tighter control over punctuation, articles, and pluralization.

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

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