Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-04

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Some people argue that primary schools focus too much on formal learning.

To what extent do you agree with this opinion?

How important do you think it is for children to play as well as learn in the primary school classroom?

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

Student answer (Band 5.5)

Some people believe that primary schools teach children formal learning too much. I partly agree with that because formal learning is not important thing only but schools should give opportunity for playing to children.

Firstly, children can learn from doing different sports activities becasue play requires thinking, ideas. So, children can learn easily from sports. For example, a school organize a tournament for different sports, after children participant in this tournament. Whenever they play any games in this tournament it requires thinking , develope new ideas for how to win games. So, it can help him to develope new things from sports. They require lots of abilities also when they play games like leadership, time management. Therefore, this skills may useful in their future life also whenever they will work with professionals.

Secondly, sports can easily teach many academic things to children because in the sports, children require to use their practicle knowledge rather than theorical knowledge. So, children like to play because they want to physical activity. Whenever children play with their friends they like share their things with their friends. They can learn easily many things from games. For example, if teachers teach alphabets to children with theorical practice, children can not easily learn from it. But, teacher teach alphabets with playing a game than children easily understand because pupils like play games rather than studying only theoritical subjects.

In conclusion, people think primary schools give only formal learning than giving practicle knowledge like giving sports activities. I partly agree with this argument because schools should give practical knowledge also than teaching only formal learning.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

The response addresses all parts of the task by expressing a partial agreement regarding formal learning and discussing the importance of play and practical activities in primary schools. However, the development of ideas is uneven. For example, while the writer attempts to explain how sports foster skills like leadership and time management, the explanation relies on repetitive phrasing and lacks deeper extension. The position is generally clear throughout, but the arguments regarding academic learning through play, such as learning the alphabet via games, remain somewhat simplistic and under-developed. To reach a higher level, the ideas would need to be more fully explored and supported with more precise examples.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The essay displays a coherent overall arrangement with a clear attempt to structure the response into introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate distinct ideas, with body paragraphs initiated by sequencing words such as 'Firstly' and 'Secondly'. However, cohesion is at times mechanical and repetitive, relying heavily on transitional phrases like 'So' and 'Therefore' to link clauses. Referencing is also occasionally unclear, such as shifting pronouns between plural and singular when referring to children and students. To improve, the writer should employ a wider and more natural variety of cohesive devices and ensure smoother transitions between sentences without overusing simple connectors.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

The vocabulary used is adequate for the task, allowing the writer to communicate their basic opinions on education and play. There are attempts to use less common vocabulary, such as 'professional', 'leadership', and 'theoretical knowledge', but these are accompanied by noticeable inaccuracies in word choice and collocation, such as 'formal learning is not important thing only' and 'participate in this tournament' written as 'participant in this tournament'. Additionally, there are word form errors and slight spelling issues, such as 'practicle' instead of practical and 'becasue'. These errors do not seriously impede communication, but they restrict the lexical score to the current level. To progress, the writer needs to expand their range of vocabulary and pay closer attention to precise word forms and correct spellings.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The writer demonstrates a mix of simple and some attempted complex sentence forms, such as conditional or relative-style clauses in 'if teachers teach alphabets to children with theorical practice'. However, there is a limited range of structures, and attempts at complex sentences often contain grammatical errors. Frequent inaccuracies occur in verb forms, prepositions, and article usage, such as 'teach children formal learning too much', 'opportunity for playing to children', and 'play games rather than studying only theoritical subjects'. Punctuation is also sometimes neglected or handled clumsily. While these errors rarely completely impede communication, they are noticeable and cause some difficulty for the reader. Greater control over complex sentence patterns and improved grammatical accuracy are required to advance.

See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.

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