Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-10-31

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)

Over the recent years, this topic has been a hot debate among peoples that all the members of the family working together in their own business is quite beneficial and famous in several countries. This is particularly significant because most of the people thinks that family members are trustable and their business is secured which is really necessary for their company growth and development. I firmly believe that apart from the positive outcomes it has quite drawbacks also when look at the broader aspects.

One of the major reason why people believes that having a family working together is crucial because all the members are familiar with the nature and capabilities of each member which can foster the development of their company without any mistakes and failures. For instance, hiring new individuals whom you do not know can a mistake and which in result loss of your business. It is evident that the family playing role in business can have impact on both the family and success of their country. Another point is that peoples believes that if they work with other partner rather their family member can easily broke their trust and can selfishly take over the company and make them miserable. For instance, a family do not deceive their own members if they have any partnership they will think of the relation and do not do this.

I firmly believe that it has quite drawbacks like working with your own family member can not give you the experience of outer world. In my view working with other peoples having broader ideas, different nature can give you a lot of experience that help in succeeding your business overall. For example, hiring other employees and peoples can help your company develop because for their innovative mentality and new ways of expanding the business. This viewpoint is well deserved and supported that why it is a disadvantage.

In conclusion, while family business can bring a lot of positive feedback in achieving goals of family members but the drawback outweighed that this can cause them having a little experience which is not good for company development. also that growing a company required a lot of different experiences.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You present a position that family businesses have benefits but also drawbacks, and you give relevant reasons on both sides. Familiarity with relatives’ abilities and the risk of an outside partner taking control support the advantages, while limited exposure to new ideas supports your concern. However, the question asks whether advantages outweigh disadvantages, and your conclusion says the drawback “outweighed” without clearly explaining why this side is stronger. Several points also remain general: explain how family familiarity improves business performance, or how outside employees bring specific benefits. A more consistent, explicit judgement and fuller development of your examples would make the response address the task more completely.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a clear overall arrangement: an introduction, a paragraph on advantages, one on disadvantages, and a conclusion. This makes the main direction easy to follow. You also use signposts such as “For instance,” “Another point,” and “In conclusion.” However, some connections are mechanical or unclear. For example, “It is evident that the family playing role in business can have impact on both the family and success of their country” does not clearly follow from the preceding example. The conclusion introduces “different experiences” again without tying it directly to your comparison of advantages and disadvantages. Use clearer references and ensure each example is followed by an explanation of how it supports your main argument.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You attempt vocabulary relevant to the topic, including “capabilities,” “partnership,” “innovative mentality,” and “development,” and the reader can generally understand your intended meaning. However, the range is limited by repeated general terms such as “business,” “family,” and “experience,” while several word choices or collocations sound unnatural: “hot debate among peoples,” “business is secured,” and “positive feedback” for benefits. Some expressions, including “make them miserable,” are also imprecise for a formal discussion of business risks. Aim for more accurate topic-specific phrasing, such as describing financial security, business growth, or fresh perspectives. Varying repeated words and checking common word partnerships would make your ideas clearer and more natural.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and longer sentences, including clauses introduced by “because,” “which,” and “while.” However, complex sentences are often faulty, and errors in agreement, verb forms, articles, and sentence construction sometimes make the meaning difficult to follow. Examples include “most of the people thinks,” “One of the major reason,” and “when look at the broader aspects.” The sentence beginning “For instance, hiring new individuals whom you do not know can a mistake” also lacks a necessary verb and has an unclear clause structure. There are punctuation and capitalization problems, particularly the lowercase “also” after a full stop. Practise building accurate sentences first, then add subordinate clauses and check subject–verb agreement.

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