Band 4.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 4.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-08-03

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

All university undergraduate courses should include a period of time spent studying abroad or doing a work placement.

Do you think the advantages of this would outweigh the disadvantages?

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

Student answer (Band 4.5)

Over the past few decades, pollution has become a significant issue for human life. Some people argued that the government should declare a vehicle-free day in week, in which all these private vehicles are banned, while the public transport is permitted. This essay will discuss both views before giving my opinion. I believe that advantages are far greater than disadvantages.

On the first hand, the primary benefit is that it will help us to reduce pollution, which is one of the most dangerous problems for all living animals and human life. It will not only decrease CO₂, but also help us to maintain a balanced life. Moreover, another advantage is that it decreases the number of vehicles, which can help us to decline traffic congestion in emergency situations. Finally, it can grow the economy because public transportation can help the government develop new facilities for ordinary people.

On the other hand, it also has few disadvantages. Firstly, it can reduce the private job and transporting facilities because some people prefer private transportation like A.C. buses and bikes. It can reduce the private facilities, which create several problems, such as people may not go to work on that day because of their travelling situation. Secondly, it can create a significant issue in emergency situations, which people face many challenging situations, as public transport may not be available everywhere or every time.

In my opinion, advantages are greater than the disadvantages because it helps us to reduce the increasing number of vehicles and pollution.

In conclusion, it also has few disadvantages, which can be reduced by the government developing public transportation. I firmly believe that it can help us to save upcoming generation.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 2.0

The response is significantly off-topic. The prompt asks about the advantages and disadvantages of university students studying abroad or doing work placements. However, your essay discusses the implementation of a 'vehicle-free day' to reduce pollution. Because you have failed to address the actual task prompt, the response cannot be assessed as a successful attempt at the assigned topic. In an actual exam, this would result in a very low score for Task Achievement as the content is irrelevant to the question provided. To improve, ensure you carefully read and identify the core subject of the prompt before beginning your outline.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0

The essay is organized into clear paragraphs with an introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. You use basic cohesive devices such as 'On the first hand', 'Moreover', and 'In conclusion' to link ideas. However, the logical progression is hampered by the fact that the content does not relate to the prompt. Within the paragraphs, the flow is generally easy to follow, but the lack of relevance to the task makes the overall structure ineffective. To improve, focus on ensuring that each paragraph directly supports the central argument related to the specific question asked.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

The vocabulary used is adequate for basic communication but lacks the precision and range required for higher bands. You use general terms like 'significant issue', 'dangerous problems', and 'challenging situations'. There are some awkward collocations, such as 'reduce the private job' and 'travelling situation', which sound unnatural. To achieve a higher band, you should aim to use more academic vocabulary and precise collocations that are relevant to the topic. Expanding your range to include less common lexical items would also help demonstrate a stronger command of the language.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

You demonstrate a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are frequent grammatical errors. For example, 'Some people argued' should be 'Some people argue', and 'in week' should be 'a week'. There are also issues with article usage and pluralization, such as 'all these private vehicles' and 'the public transport'. While these errors do not completely impede communication, they are frequent enough to prevent a higher score. Focusing on subject-verb agreement and the correct use of articles would significantly improve the accuracy of your writing.

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