Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-18
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 recent times, people state that theatres and cinemas are no more necessary as there has been a significant rise in the popularity of online content, while others lean towards the cinemas because of the financial and cultural significance. In my opinion, online contents dominates the entertainment sector over any other forms of media because of the high involvement in the modern age.
Cinema are no longer necessary as a result of technological advancement in the entertainment sector. Because of that people started getting access to portable gadgets that allowed them to visit websites for watching all kind of entertainment content. For example, an individual won't have to go through a hurdle of buying tickets and travel to a cinema hall if he/she have a online subscription of any entertainment application and that ease led to the rise of online entertainment based platforms in the modern age.
Theatres and cinemas still carry values as they contribute towards the economy and the culture. Theatres and cinemas can earn significant amount of cash through tickets and food ventures. As they attract alots of people, local businesses and cultures can ultilize it to promote themselves. For instance, in a local village where there is a scattered market cinemas and theatres can accumulate all the population through a gathering in which local businesses can take benifits and people have a place to share their backgrounds.
In conclusion, while theatres and cinemas carries values, they are limited to remote areas where people lack facilities to be occupied. I strongly believe that online platforms like youtube and netflix are major entertainment sources because of the wide availability of different gadgets for the access of internet.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The response addresses all parts of the task by discussing both views—that cinemas are no longer important due to online entertainment, and that they remain economically and culturally significant—while also clearly stating the writer's own opinion. The position is maintained throughout the essay. However, some ideas lack full development and generalisations are somewhat broad, such as the claim that online content completely dominates all other media forms. Key arguments regarding economic and cultural impacts are introduced but lack specific real-world examples, relying instead on generalized scenarios. Despite these minor limitations, the prompt's requirements are covered adequately, placing the response solidly at Band 6.0 according to official descriptors.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The essay displays a coherent overall arrangement with a clear paragraph structure, dedicating distinct sections to the introduction, the two opposing views, and the conclusion. However, cohesion is sometimes mechanical or faulty, with awkward transitional phrases like 'Because of that people started' and 'As they attract alots of people'. Paragraphing is used appropriately, but referencing within sentences can occasionally be unclear, such as pronoun ambiguity with 'he/she have a online subscription'. Overall, the logical progression is apparent, but cohesive devices are not always managed with sufficient flexibility or precision, reflecting Band 6.0 characteristics.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully attempting less common items such as 'technological advancement', 'financial and cultural significance', and 'portable gadgets'. However, there are noticeable spelling and word choice errors, such as 'alots' instead of 'a lot', 'ultilize' instead of 'utilize', 'benifits' instead of 'benefits', and grammatical inaccuracies like 'online contents dominates' and 'an online subscription... and that ease'. While these errors do not impede communication, they restrict the lexical score to Band 6.0, as the vocabulary lacks the precision and flexibility required for higher bands.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The writer uses a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating attempts at subordination and relative clauses, such as 'which local businesses can take benifits and people have a place to share their backgrounds'. However, there are frequent errors in grammar, article usage, and subject-verb agreement throughout the text, including 'Cinema are no longer necessary', 'if he/she have a online subscription', and 'theatres and cinemas carries values'. Punctuation is generally acceptable, but grammatical slips are regular enough to cause occasional distraction for the reader without completely obscuring meaning, fitting the Band 6.0 criteria well.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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