Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-10-13

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)

Thesedays, people like to own their business to make their self growth and acquire fame and money. It is argued that in many countries family person works jointly in their family business. I believe that working in a relatives company has more pros as it helps for personal and professional development. However, there are minor cons which can be altered easily.

Firstly, the major advantage is that there is no struggle to find a career. The person do not have to worry about what to study and where to apply for the job. As they own the company they always have a option to work in their organization. For instance, if the family have cloth making workshop it is always easy for a teenager to work there without spending their time in learning new concept and applying job for the same. Secondly, it provides self development and success by making profit in the business. For example, the man can gain extra income by selling more products so that can help him to raise his name and fame for that owned business.

On the flip side, there is a disadvantage too. Same way if company gets loss there is also a big loss for the family. Sometime due to heavy financial damage the factory comes to the point of its closure which affects mentally as wells as socially. To illustrate, if the company do not perform better and cannot sell their goods in required quantity then employer has to bare certain costs which might disturbs relatives mental health. However, every organization faces downfall and by tackling that they learn how to make a better growth. So this can be fixed if everyone works with great enthusiasm.

To conclude, working together in family business has more profits as it helps for self growth and there would be no struggle to find a new career and work hard on it. Although, the company loss reflects to owner's downfall but it can manage by working hard and learning the methods to tackle those situation.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

Your position is clear: you believe family businesses have more advantages, and you address both benefits and drawbacks. The points about easier access to work and the effects of financial losses are relevant to the question. You also support them with examples, such as a family clothing workshop. However, some ideas are more fully explained than others. The claim that relatives avoid a struggle to find a career is illustrated, but the link between working in the business and “self development and success” is less clear; earning extra income does not by itself explain how personal or professional development occurs. The disadvantage is also described mainly as financial and emotional harm. Develop these points with clearer cause-and-effect reasoning and a more specific example.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The response has a clear overall structure: an introduction, two paragraphs presenting advantages and disadvantages, and a conclusion. Sequencing phrases such as “Firstly,” “Secondly,” and “On the flip side” help readers follow the main stages, and the conclusion returns to your position. This coherent arrangement meets the criterion well. To make progression more consistently smooth, ensure that each example directly develops the point before it. For instance, the clothing-workshop example supports easier access to work, while the next example about selling more products shifts to income without a clear transition explaining its connection to development. Some linking phrases, including “Same way,” are awkward or unclear, and “However” introduces a response to the disadvantage without fully clarifying how it follows. Use more precise links and clearer references between sentences.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use enough topic-related vocabulary to communicate the main ideas, including “family business,” “financial damage,” “closure,” and “mental health.” However, the range is limited and several noticeable word-choice and collocation errors make some sentences difficult to interpret naturally. Phrases such as “make their self growth,” “raise his name and fame,” and “company gets loss” do not express the intended ideas idiomatically. There are also spelling or word-form problems, including “Thesedays,” “as wells,” and “bare” where the intended meaning is paying costs. Aim to learn vocabulary in natural combinations and check word forms and spelling. More precise terms for employment, business performance, and financial risk would make your argument clearer and more convincing.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentences, including conditional structures such as “if the company do not perform better” and a concession beginning “Although.” This gives the response some structural variety, but control is inconsistent, and errors recur in agreement, articles, and sentence construction. For example, “The person do not have to worry” needs subject–verb agreement, while “a option” needs the correct article. In “if the family have cloth making workshop,” several parts of the sentence pattern require correction. The final sentence beginning “Although” is also not a complete, well-formed contrast. Practise checking each sentence for a clear subject and verb, correct agreement, and complete clause structure; then review articles and punctuation. These changes would make your meaning easier to follow.

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