Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-10-03
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)
It has been observed that most of the family business are being run by their own family members which gives them more support, more creative ideas to run company smoothly. This trend has more positive impact because it help in boosting their business to higher level and , yet its negative impact of having disputes within families business cannot be neglected and I will discuss my ideas in the upcoming paragraphs.
On the one hand, running family busniess by their own families is considered to be a strong family relations which means they share strong bond between each other. Due to this, they support and come with different ideas which not only help in the growth of their firm but also make them emotinally connected to their families. In addition to this, they do not have to depend on other people in search of staff or hiring new people. They have their own family members which can perfom different of tasks according to their ability. For example, one person can handle customer service area, other can help in finance. As a result, their is less struggle of choosing people and will also have less burden in the term of trust.
On the other hand, the disadvantage of working within the families business is that it sometimes leads to conflicts. For instance, if two family are working and they share different opinions then it will create diagreement which further arise the problem of balming on each other and effect the company's development.
To conclude, family business have both merits and demerits. Disputes can create difficulities but the trust, support between families can develop their business more sucessfully. Therefore, I believe they have to support each other in every phase to grow the
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 6.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0
The response addresses all parts of the task, presenting both advantages and disadvantages of family businesses, alongside a clear overall position. However, some ideas are under-developed or lack sufficient extension. For example, while the writer mentions that family members bring different ideas and strong bonds, this point is not fully explained with deep analysis. Similarly, the disadvantage of conflicts is illustrated with a basic example ('if two family are working and they share different opinions') that remains somewhat superficial. To move to a higher level, the writer needs to provide more fully developed explanations and more thoroughly supported arguments for both sides of the debate.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0
The essay displays a coherent overall arrangement with a clear attempt at logical progression. The response is divided into logical paragraphs, starting with an introduction, followed by body paragraphs addressing advantages and disadvantages, and a conclusion. However, cohesion is at times mechanical or faulty. Cohesive devices like 'On the one hand' and 'On the other hand' are used to structure the text, but referencing is occasionally unclear, such as the pronoun use in 'their business' or 'they support'. Additionally, the conclusion trails off abruptly without a complete final thought ('grow the'), which disrupts the smooth flow of information.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.0
The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully communicating everyday concepts related to employment and family dynamics. There are noticeable spelling and word choice errors throughout the text, such as 'busniess', 'emotinally', 'perfom', 'diagreement', 'balming', 'effect' instead of affect, and 'sucessfully'. Attempts at less common vocabulary result in inaccuracies that sometimes require the reader to pause, though they do not completely impede communication. To improve, the writer needs to focus on correct word formation, accurate spelling, and more precise lexical collocation.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0
The writing demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, attempting structures such as relative clauses and conditional-style setups ('if two family are working and they share different opinions'). There are some errors in grammar and punctuation, including subject-verb agreement issues ('most of the family business are', 'their is less struggle') and article misuse. While these errors are noticeable and require some effort from the reader to parse, they rarely entirely impede communication. To reach the next level, the writer must increase control over basic sentence patterns and reduce the frequency of grammatical slips.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.