Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-08-25
IELTS Writing Task 2 question
Some people say that in the digital age, theatres and cinemas are no longer important as people can watch all the entertainment they want online. Others argue that theatres and cinemas are still important both economically and culturally.
Discuss both these views and give your own opinion.
Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.
Student answer (Band 5.5)
In the modern era, some people believe that theatres and cinemas are no longer important as people can watch all the entertainment they want online, but some are disagreed with this statement. In this essay we discuss both the views and give our opinion as well.
Today every single person has their own phone and membership of different apps where they watch new released movies without going outside, which is a positive point. That save the travelling time. People do not need to travel outside to theatres or cinemas to watch the movies, they watch that in their phone at home, workplace or in the public transport as well. It also saves the money; they do not need to book or buy the tickets and not to take off from work for that specific period of time.
On the other hand, we lose the chance to spend or enjoy time with their friend, partner or family because now they watch alone. They spend most of the time alone, which is the main reason of the lone less and increases number of divorce cases. It also effects the health like phones have small screen which direct impact the eyesight and to listen the dialogue we use air pods or headphones which increases the problem of hearing.
At the end, many people prefer today to go to cinemas or theatre to watch their favorite movies and the actor or actress, which is a direct sign that now a days people also prefer to go outside to spend time with their loved ones. According to me both have their own pros and cons but I also prefer to go outside to enjoy.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The response addresses both sides of the argument and provides a personal opinion, meeting the basic requirements of the prompt. However, the development of ideas is limited. The arguments regarding the negative health impacts of phones and the link to divorce are somewhat tangential and lack a direct connection to the economic or cultural importance of theatres. The essay would benefit from more focused discussion on the specific economic and cultural roles of cinemas, such as their contribution to local industries or their role as community hubs, rather than focusing on personal health issues.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0
The essay is organised into paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the structure. However, the use of cohesive devices is somewhat mechanical and repetitive (e.g., 'On the other hand', 'At the end'). There are instances where the logical flow is interrupted by awkward phrasing, such as the transition between the benefits of online streaming and the negative social consequences. The referencing is occasionally unclear, particularly in the third paragraph where the pronoun 'they' is used without a clear antecedent for the group being discussed.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task but lacks the range and precision required for a higher band. There is some repetition of basic terms like 'watch', 'movies', and 'phones'. Some word choices are imprecise or non-standard, such as 'lone less' (loneliness) and 'new released' (newly released). The student attempts to use some topic-specific vocabulary, but the overall lexical control is limited, and the errors in word formation occasionally distract the reader.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors throughout. Examples include subject-verb agreement issues ('some are disagreed', 'that save the travelling time') and awkward phrasing ('which direct impact the eyesight'). While these errors do not completely impede communication, they are frequent enough to be noticeable. The control over punctuation and sentence boundaries is inconsistent, which affects the overall fluency of the writing.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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