Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-04

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 5.0)

The given statement proposes that the only way to provide enough homes in big cities, usually facing the problem of over population, is to make large apartment blocks. The given statement seems to be a great proposal at first glance but a keen eye would try to find the pros and cons of the proposal. Yes, it is a great idea to build large building apartments to provide homes to the people. But, we neglect the fact that the maintenance of such tall buildings is not easy. Not only that the building of such tall apartments is not an easy task. No doubt with modern technologies and machineries, it can be made possible. But when we must remember that the more effort one puts in something, the greater result one expects from it. Those tall buildings are tough to be built. If those buildings are made, they will not be economical. For people who live a mediocre life, it would not be a good home. It should be something that they can afford. These are the downsides of such tall apartment blocks. To summarise, the building and maintenance of such buildings is not a piece of cake. Moreover, the place would be way more expensive for a person who lives a normal mediocre life. The place should be affordable for all. Now, the solution of these problems can be very simple. The apartment blocks should be made such that they are affordable for a person of normal wealth and lifestyle

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

The response addresses the prompt only partially, which is characteristic of this band level. The student attempts to discuss whether tall apartment blocks are the best solution for providing homes in large cities, but the position is not always clearly stated or maintained. While the writer acknowledges the proposal, the development of ideas remains limited and under-developed. For instance, the argument that tall buildings are not economical or are tough to be built is repeated rather than extended with specific examples or deep reasoning. Furthermore, the final sentence introduces a slight pivot towards a potential solution rather than sustaining a clear, cohesive stance on the extent of agreement with the statement. To reach a higher level, the writer needs to fully develop each main idea with relevant supporting arguments and maintain a consistent, well-articulated position throughout the entire response.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.5

The text demonstrates some overall organisation, but it lacks a clear, logical progression throughout. The response suffers from noticeable repetition, particularly in how the arguments regarding affordability and building difficulty are restated multiple times without moving the discussion forward (e.g., repeating that the buildings are not a piece of cake and expensive for a normal mediocre life). Cohesive devices are sometimes inadequate, repetitive, or mechanical, such as the frequent reliance on transitional phrases like 'The given statement' and 'Not only that'. Paragraphing is also an issue; the essay is compressed into a single, bulky block of text rather than being divided into distinct introductory, body, and concluding paragraphs. To improve, the writer must ensure logical sequencing from sentence to sentence, employ a wider and more accurate range of cohesive ties, and use paragraphing effectively to structure the arguments clearly.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The vocabulary used is limited but minimally adequate to convey the basic message. The writer attempts some less common expressions, such as 'keen eye', 'mediocre life', and 'not a piece of cake', but these attempts are sometimes marked by awkward word choices or inappropriate style for an academic essay. There are also noticeable errors in word choice and collocation, such as 'over population' written as two words and 'make large apartment blocks' instead of 'build'. While these issues do not entirely impede communication, they cause some difficulty for the reader and prevent the vocabulary from achieving greater precision. To progress to a higher band, the writer should incorporate a wider and more natural range of academic vocabulary, ensure precise word choices, and minimise lexical errors.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The writing relies on a limited range of sentence structures, and attempts at more complex sentences are often faulty. There are frequent grammatical errors that can cause difficulty for the reader, including issues with articles, verb forms, and prepositional patterns. Examples include 'when we must remember' where the conjunction is misused, and 'the solution of these problems' instead of 'to these problems'. Punctuation and sentence boundaries also show instability, leading to run-on phrasing in places. To achieve a higher score, the writer needs to demonstrate a greater variety of complex grammatical structures while improving overall accuracy, ensuring that basic agreements, tenses, and structural patterns are handled correctly.

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

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