Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-12

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)

Due to digitalization many people are prefering to watch entertainment online, as they believe theatres and cinemas are no vital in this generation, whereas others claims that theatres and cinemas are still essential for culture and economy.

On the one hand, watching movies on digital platform is more flexible and reliable, as people can watch movies as per their convenience. They do not have to be present at particular time to enjoy movies because movies can be watched at anytime. Moreover, online applications provides minimal cost to buy a plan to enjoy unlimited entertainment. As a result, people can purchase a plan to watch movies. For example, Netflix is a digital platform, where individuals can view basic to premium entertainment besides, Netflix is cheap and easy to use.

On the other hand, a fair quantity of people argue that theatre and cinema viewing experience is inexpressible, as it gives a glance towards one's culture. Watching movies in theatre and cinemas generates revenue to the film maker along with it benefits the country because it provides money in the form of tax. As a consequence, citizens of the country can get better service. Furthermore, if a movie is released in a particular country, it represents the tradition and a culture of a community. Thereafter, people watching this movies can learn lot about one's culture. Also theatres and cinemas creates employement for many people, therefore employment rate of a country will be decreased.

To conclude, watching movies in any digital platform is beneficial not only because it cost effective, but also because it is flexible, as people can enjoy watching movies at anytime, at anyplace as per their convenience. Although, theatres and cinemas provides employment to many individuals, also theatres provides culturely dramas, so people can gain knowledge about there traditional norms. Consequently, it generates revenue out of movies and contributes to the country.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You discuss both perspectives: online viewing is presented as convenient and affordable, while cinemas are linked to cultural representation, tax revenue and employment. Your conclusion also gives a preference for digital platforms on practical grounds, so a position is present. However, the response does not develop the comparison fully: the economic and cultural benefits are listed rather than explained with specific examples, and the claim that cinema employment means the country’s employment rate “will be decreased” is unclear and appears to contradict the intended point. The online example of Netflix supports affordability, but could be connected more directly to why this makes cinemas less important. Develop each main reason and make your overall judgement clearer and more consistent.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a clear overall structure, with an introduction, separate paragraphs for the two views, and a conclusion. “On the one hand” and “On the other hand” help signal the discussion, and the ideas generally follow a sensible order within each paragraph. However, some linking is mechanical or imprecise: “As a consequence” and “Thereafter” do not clearly show the relationships between the points that precede them. The conclusion also shifts from favouring online viewing to listing cinema benefits without clearly resolving the comparison. Improve progression by grouping related points, using references that make the connection explicit, and ensuring each paragraph leads naturally to the next.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use a range of topic-related vocabulary, including “digital platform,” “revenue,” “tradition,” and “employment,” which allows you to discuss both sides of the issue. There are also attempts at more formal phrasing, such as “generates revenue” and “represents the tradition.” However, several word choices and collocations are inaccurate or unnatural, including “no vital,” “a fair quantity of people,” and “inexpressible” for a cinema experience. Spelling and word-form errors such as “employement” and “culturely” are noticeable. These do not prevent the main message from being understood, but they limit precision. Aim for natural collocations and check spelling and word forms carefully.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and complex sentence forms, including clauses introduced by “as,” “because,” and “if,” and most ideas remain understandable. However, errors occur across the response, particularly with subject–verb agreement, verb forms, articles and plurals. For example, “many people are prefering” should be “many people prefer,” “online applications provides” should be “online applications provide,” and “theatres and cinemas creates” should be “theatres and cinemas create.” Some sentence boundaries and punctuation also need attention, as in the Netflix example, where “besides” is joined awkwardly to the preceding clause. Practise checking each sentence’s subject and verb, and use punctuation to separate complete ideas.

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