Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-11-03

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)

Cinema influences people life in so many ways. Some people argue that theatres and cinemas are no longer important in this digital world, if people want, they can have all the entertainment through online. While others believe that theatres and cinemas are still important both economically and culturally. I believe that theatres and cinemas play an important role in the development of society.

The theatres and cinemas have a great history, people used to enjoy a lot in the theatres. People gain knowledge about society, law, culture from cinemas. Cinemas and theatres played a vital role in civilization of our society. In previous years, it was the only entertainment and also people enjoy it with their family. Meanwhile, the theatres not only offers entertainment and knowledge, but also provides good income for the owners and the government through taxes. Furthermore, the theatre experience gives a nostalgic movements.

On the othar hand, technology has development dramatically. Now people able to watch movie and series online and by this way, they can also save their money, but it cannot match the excitement we get from watching movies in theatres. Nevertheless, watching horror movies and action movies online will never give the experience of watching in theatres.

I personally have both online and theatre experience, many times i regretted missing some movies in theatres. When i watch those movies online. I felt like something is missing, i couldn't enjoy the movie to the fullest. From my perspective, it is really important to have theatres and cinemas regardless of modern technologies and online platforms. Additionally, it is essenntial for both economy and culture

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You address both views and state a clear opinion: theatres and cinemas remain important despite online entertainment. The discussion includes relevant points about cultural knowledge, family enjoyment, tax income, and the distinctive experience of watching films in a cinema. Your personal example of regretting films watched online also supports your position. However, the two sides are not developed equally: the benefits of online viewing are mainly reduced to saving money, while the economic and cultural claims about cinemas are asserted rather than explained with specific examples. The response therefore covers the task, but some ideas remain under-developed. To strengthen it, explain how cinemas support jobs or local businesses and give a concrete example of their cultural influence. The length requirement is met; 11 words copied from the task prompt were not counted.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a clear overall structure: an introduction, a paragraph on the value of theatres, a contrasting paragraph about online viewing, and a conclusion that restates your opinion. Linking expressions such as “On the other hand,” “Furthermore,” and “Additionally” help signal relationships between ideas. However, progression within paragraphs is sometimes loose: the first body paragraph moves from history to knowledge, family entertainment, tax income, and nostalgia without clearly connecting these points. Some transitions also feel mechanical, and “Meanwhile” does not clearly express the relationship intended. Use topic sentences to establish each paragraph’s main point, then group supporting explanations and examples beneath it. Clearer referencing and more precise links between claims would make the argument easier to follow.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use a relevant range of vocabulary for the topic, including “digital world,” “vital role,” “taxes,” “nostalgic,” and “experience,” and your meaning is generally clear. There are also attempts to express more specific ideas about culture and society. However, several word-choice, collocation, and spelling problems reduce precision, such as “nostalgic movements,” “civilization of our society,” and “technology has development dramatically.” “Other” is misspelled as “othar,” and “essenntial” is also misspelled. Some wording is repetitive, particularly repeated references to “theatres and cinemas” and “experience.” Build accuracy by learning common collocations and checking spelling, and vary repeated terms with suitable alternatives such as “film venues” or “cinema-going.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentence forms, including a contrast with “While others believe…” and a concession introduced by “Nevertheless.” Most ideas can be understood, but some grammatical errors occur in sentence boundaries, verb forms, agreement, and articles. For example, the opening joins two independent clauses with a comma: “in this digital world, if people want, they can…”; “the theatres not only offers” has a subject–verb agreement problem; and “Now people able to watch” is missing a verb. The final personal example also shifts between past and present forms (“I regretted” and “I felt”). Practise complete clause structures and consistent tense choices, and proofread for agreement and missing verbs. More accurate complex sentences would improve control.

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