Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-26

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)

Definitely, building tall apartment blocks in large cities is a good way to provide more housing to the people living in those cities whether they are already residents of those cities or the visitors from other cities or countries looking for places to live. Building tall apartment blocks would allow people to have more space for public places such as cafes, libraries, museums, etc. For example, in the cities like Seoul, Shanghai, NYC or Tokyo, due to more international exposure, the living costs have become specifically high and mostly people can't afford to have separate big houses so having small apartments is very convenient for those with low budgets and the international students or workers looking for somewhere to stay. And hence it also solves the problem of having no places to live for the migrants in such big cities with a wide range of people looking for opportunities in those cities from all over the world and the locals can also live in peace knowing there is enough space for them in their own cities. For example, NYC have become so overpopulated that even the small apartments have such high prices but still no comfort. So sometimes, as in this case, even after having such large buildings with multiple apartments, there are still not sufficient homes for the residents. However, in general, it is much helpful to have schemes like these. Besides homes, offices are also built in this way. Like having tall buildings containing offices of all the employs of the company like in Microsoft, Google and many more companies having their largest branches in big cities.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

Your position is broadly supportive: you argue that tall apartment blocks can increase housing supply and make smaller homes more affordable, using examples such as Seoul, Shanghai, New York and Tokyo. You also acknowledge an important limitation: New York can remain expensive and overcrowded even with many apartments. This gives the response relevant material, but the discussion is only partly developed. The claim that high-rise housing creates more room for public places is not explained, and the final comparison with office buildings does not directly establish that apartment blocks are the best way to provide homes. To strengthen the response, state your degree of agreement clearly at the outset and develop two focused reasons, explaining how each addresses housing shortages and any drawbacks.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.5

The response has a recognisable line of thought, moving from the benefits of apartments to the continuing housing problem in New York and then to a concluding qualification. However, ideas are crowded into one paragraph, so the reader cannot easily distinguish the main reasons from examples or the counterpoint. Several links are also mechanical or unclear: “And hence” introduces a broad claim about migrants, while “However, in general” does not clearly resolve the preceding point that apartments may still be insufficient. The office-building example at the end feels like a new topic rather than a conclusion. Use separate paragraphs for your position, supporting reasons, and limitation, and make each paragraph’s central point explicit before adding examples.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use enough topic-related vocabulary to communicate your main ideas, including “overpopulated,” “living costs,” “international students,” and “migrants.” There are also attempts at more specific phrasing, such as “wide range of people looking for opportunities.” However, some expressions are imprecise or unnatural, which limits clarity and flexibility. For example, “more international exposure” does not clearly explain why housing costs rise, and “no comfort” is vague in the New York example. “Employs” is also the wrong word form for people working at a company. Aim for precise housing and urban-planning terms, and check collocations so that examples support your argument rather than distract from it.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mixture of simple and complex sentences, including clauses beginning “whether” and “so,” and the overall meaning is generally understandable. However, long sentences often combine several claims without clear grammatical control, as in the sentence beginning “For example, in the cities like Seoul…” This makes relationships between ideas harder to follow. There are also errors in agreement and sentence construction: “NYC have become” should be “NYC has become,” and “Like having tall buildings…” is a fragment rather than a complete sentence. Review subject–verb agreement and make sure each sentence has a clear main clause. Breaking lengthy sentences into shorter units would also help you control punctuation and express complex points more accurately.

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