Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-24

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 this contemporary era, some sectors of society assert that in this digital world theatres and cinemas are no longer essential as people can watch all types of movies and shows in any online platform whereas, other proponents of society contend that theatres and cinemas are still worthwhile in terms of money and culture. This essay will scrutinize both the perspectives followed by my firm consideration emphasizing that to watch movies there is no need to visit theaters and cinemas.

On the one hand, some people claim that it is better to watch movies online rather than visiting to theatres and cinemas because it is very convenient. To be specific, nowadays many platforms like moviebox and netmirror offers high video quality along with a better sound experience. So, people like to watch movies from their home which offers convenience. Moreover, it also saves time and money. To elaborate, visiting cinemas involves high cost and takes more time to travel.

On the other hand, another group of people counter claim that it is beneficial economically and culturally due to better sound and picture quality. To explain it in detail, many individuals travel to cinemas and theatres to have better sound quality as well as picture quality of the screen this is why people believe that it is better to visit cinemas and theatres for watching a movie.

To conclude, both perspectives have their own benefits like watching movies online offers convenience and saves time and money while watching movies in theatres and cinemas offers worthwhile benefit like better sound and picture quality. However, I inferentially postulate that watching movies at home is more beneficial.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

The response addresses all parts of the prompt by discussing both views—the obsolescence of theatres in the digital age versus their continued economic and cultural value—and provides a clear personal opinion. In the introduction, the writer states, "This essay will scrutinize both the perspectives followed by my firm consideration emphasizing that to watch movies there is no need to visit theaters and cinemas." However, the main body paragraphs lack deep development. For instance, the second body paragraph repeats the idea of convenience and mentions platforms like "moviebox and netmirror", but does not explore the wider cultural or economic implications of the first view in depth. Furthermore, the third body paragraph essentially restates picture and sound quality without introducing fresh economic or cultural arguments, leading to some circular reasoning. Nevertheless, the position remains clear throughout, earning a Band 6.0.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The essay displays a coherent overall arrangement with a clear attempt at paragraphing, featuring a distinct introduction, two body paragraphs representing opposing views, and a conclusion. Transitional markers such as "On the one hand", "On the other hand", and "To conclude" are appropriately deployed to guide the reader through the structure. However, paragraphing and referencing can feel somewhat mechanical at times. For example, the phrase "another group of people counter claim that it is beneficial economically and culturally due to better sound and picture quality" attributes economic and cultural benefits solely to technical quality rather than broader industry impacts. Additionally, cohesive devices are sometimes repetitive, but overall progression is maintained adequately across the entire text, meriting a Band 6.0.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary suitable for the task, successfully attempting less common items such as "contemporary era", "scrutinize", "inferentially postulate", and "convenience". However, there are notable inaccuracies in word choice, collocation, and phrasing. For instance, writing "in any online platform" instead of "on any online platform", "visiting to theatres" instead of "visiting theatres", and "counter claim" as a single word or misused verb phrase detracts from precision. The writer also repeats terms like "sound and picture quality" across multiple paragraphs. Because the vocabulary range is sufficient to communicate the main points despite lexical slips and minor errors, the performance aligns with Band 6.0 descriptors.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The response features a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating attempts at subordination and relative clauses, such as in "In this contemporary era, some sectors of society assert that..." and "To be specific, nowadays many platforms like moviebox and netmirror offers high video quality..." However, grammatical errors are frequent throughout the text. There is a subject-verb agreement error with "platforms... offers" instead of "offer". Prepositional errors also occur, such as "visiting to theatres" and "watching a movie" where simple object placement is cleaner. Punctuation is generally acceptable, but comma splices and run-on structures occasionally surface. While these errors do not severely impede communication, they prevent the text from reaching a higher band, placing it firmly at Band 6.0.

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