Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-09-22
IELTS Writing Task 2 question
Write about the following topic:
In many countries, family members work together in their family business.
Do you think family businesses have more advantages than disadvantages?
Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.
Student answer (Band 5.5)
In many countries, people prefer to work in family business instead of somewhere else. I think, it has more positive aspects than negative.
In family business, when they work together. They can learn so many things from each other. They can guide them where to start. They get to know about their business at a younger age. For example, in family business, if the father is the CEO. He will teach his children how to manage business at their childhood. Their children will learn about everything easily and faster. Along this, it provides stability. They do not have to worry about anything like money and working under someone else. They can directly get higher positions. They do not have to do so much hard work to get permanent job like others.
However, it has some disadvantages. When they have family business, they just have to follow the same rules that is following by their parents and grandparents. Some people have different interests but they force to do the same kind of work. They can study according to their interest. At the young age, they told to do the same education. This can give them stress and load on them. They cannot get to know about other companies and works. They also cannot meet with different types of people. If they will not meet with distinct people, they will not be able to get more knowledge.
In conclusion, although most of the people prefer to work in family business because of stable job but it will not help them to gain more information about the world.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 6.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0
The response addresses the prompt by discussing both the advantages and disadvantages of family businesses, presenting a clear position that the advantages outweigh the disadvantages. Ideas are introduced and supported with examples, such as a father acting as CEO and teaching children management skills at a younger age. However, some arguments tend to over-generalize, such as claiming that family business workers 'do not have to do so much hard work to get permanent job like others' or that they 'cannot meet with different types of people.' The development is sufficient to meet the requirements of a Band 6.0, as all parts of the task are addressed, though certain ideas remain somewhat under-developed and rely on general assertions rather than thorough elaboration.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The essay displays a coherent overall arrangement with a clear introduction, body paragraphs addressing advantages and disadvantages separately, and a concluding sentence. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate distinct themes. However, cohesion at the sentence level is often faulty or mechanical. There are numerous referencing issues and missing conjunctions, such as starting a sentence with 'In family business, when they work together' which creates a fragment, or using 'that is following by their parents' where grammatical linking fails. Cohesive devices are sometimes inaccurate or repetitive, leading to a choppy flow that pulls the score to Band 5.5.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The lexical resource is adequate for the task, allowing the writer to communicate straightforward ideas about family businesses, jobs, and stress. Less common vocabulary is attempted with some inaccuracy, such as 'stability', 'higher positions', and 'different interests'. There are several word-choice and collocation errors throughout the text, including phrases like 'force to do' instead of 'forced to do' and 'load on them'. Spelling is generally acceptable, but the frequent errors in word formation and collocation prevent the response from achieving a higher band, placing it firmly at Band 5.5.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, though attempts at complex structures are frequently faulty. Examples of grammatical errors include sentence fragments and punctuation issues, such as 'In family business, when they work together. They can learn so many things...' and '...the same rules that is following by their parents'. Furthermore, passive voice is misused ('they force to do' and 'they told to do'), and subject-verb agreement lapses occur ('rules that is'). While these errors are frequent and cause some difficulty for the reader, communication is rarely impeded entirely, matching the criteria for a Band 5.0.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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