Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-19

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 simplest way to provide accomadation to residents is by building tall apartment buildings. I agree with this statement because the advnatages outweight the disadvantages.

Apartments are a place to live. It does not matter if they are in a tall building or not. The basic need is shelter over the roof where people and live and this need is fulfilled by the tall apartments. Less surface area on the ground is needed as the apartments are built in the vertical direction. It may not be possbile to build houses due to unavailability of area and building tall apartment blocks completely overcomes this issue. Furthermore, there is friendlier environment in these sites because people are living next to each other. They are involved in each other lives and take care of each other as compared to living in houses isolately. These factors together proves that the conveniant way to provide homes are tall flat buildings.

On the other side, there are some disadvantages of tall apartment blocks. While some people would prefer living next to each other, some will prefer distance. For these people, there is more privacy in living in homes that are distant for example one family can not play music on loud speakers or have a movie night because the noise can reach the other apartment but that is not the case for private homes. Moreover more people can live in a house as compared to an aparment due to the size. But with more comfort, comes the cost. Houses are expensive as compared to flats. The infrastructure for tall apartment should be really solid and elevator must need to be present there otherwise it becomes a hurdle in dailiy life activities. The most important disadvantage for tall apartment buildings is due to danger of natural disaster like an earthquake that endangers the life of many human beings altogether. Hence, even if there are disadantages of tall apartment buildings, there are disavanatges of the alternate options as well.

To conclude, the most straight forward way to provide homes is building tall apartment sites rather than houses. There are disadvantages of living in these areas but they can be subjective and natural disasters can cause loss of life in houses as well. That simply depends on luck, therefore I agree with the original statement.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

Your position is clear from the introduction to the conclusion: you agree that tall apartment blocks are the most practical way to provide homes. You give relevant reasons, including limited land, affordability compared with houses, and the risks of noise and natural disasters. This addresses the task, but some points are more fully explained than others. For example, the claim that residents “take care of each other” is asserted without an example or explanation, and the comparison about how many people can live in a house is not clearly connected to the argument. Develop each main reason with a specific example or explanation, and make the comparison between apartments and other housing options more precise.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a clear overall structure: an introduction, a paragraph supporting apartment blocks, a paragraph considering disadvantages, and a conclusion that restates your view. Linking phrases such as “Furthermore,” “On the other side,” and “To conclude” help signal the stages of the argument. However, some connections are mechanical or unclear. The second body paragraph moves quickly from privacy to household size, cost, infrastructure, and earthquakes, so the relationship between these points is not always easy to follow. The reference to “these factors” in the first body paragraph is also broad. Group related ideas and use clearer transitions or topic sentences to guide the reader through each paragraph.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use enough topic-related vocabulary to discuss housing, including “surface area,” “privacy,” “infrastructure,” and “natural disaster.” However, the range and control are uneven, with repeated general terms such as “houses,” “apartments,” and “disadvantages,” and several inaccurate or misspelled forms that reduce precision. Phrases such as “shelter over the roof” and “friendlier environment” do not express the intended meaning naturally, while “conveniant” and “disavanatges” are spelling errors. Aim for more precise housing vocabulary and check spelling and collocations carefully. For instance, describe the need as “shelter” and refer to “a sense of community” rather than relying on vague or unnatural phrasing.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mix of simple and complex sentences, including clauses beginning with “because,” “while,” and “even if,” and your meaning is generally understandable. Some grammatical errors remain, particularly with agreement, articles, and sentence construction. For example, “These factors together proves” should use a plural verb, and “the convenient way … are” has a mismatch between the subject and verb. In “people are living next to each other,” the tense is less suitable for a general statement, and “elevator must need to be present” is not a well-formed construction. Review subject–verb agreement and article use, and edit complex sentences to ensure each clause is complete and correctly connected.

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