Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-09-06

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

In some parts of the world, people buy far too many clothes.

What are the reasons for this?
How can people be persuaded to reduce the number of clothes they buy?

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

Student answer (Band 5.0)

There is an ongoing debate about people who like to purchase a lot of clothes in different parts of the world. This increasing trend is based on the number of factors like growing fashion sense and how social media influences people in making choices regarding clothing.

The use of money on unnecessary buying is a serious concern of the modern world. In an era of inflation, people are striving hard to make their ends meet, spending huge amount on clothing only for the sake of fashion is unjustified. Famous personalities, celebrities and influencers actively update their lifestyle on social media which inspires many followers to copy their dressing sense. Additionally people on social platforms are either rich or get paid to wear brands but it influences ordinary people into buying more and more just to look like them.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 4.0

The response is significantly under the required word count of 250 words, reaching only 138 words. Consequently, the task is only partially addressed. While the essay identifies reasons for excessive clothing purchases—specifically social media influence and fashion trends—it fails to address the second part of the prompt entirely: how people can be persuaded to reduce their consumption. Because the second half of the task is completely missing and the length is insufficient, the response cannot be developed beyond a Band 4 level for this criterion.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0

The essay is organized into two short paragraphs, but the lack of a conclusion or a second body paragraph makes the overall structure incomplete. Cohesive devices are used, such as 'Additionally' and 'In an era of', but they are somewhat mechanical. The progression of ideas is limited because the essay stops abruptly before addressing the second half of the prompt. Paragraphing is present, but the brevity of the text prevents a clear logical flow throughout the entire argument.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

The vocabulary is adequate for the task but lacks the range and precision required for higher bands. Phrases like 'growing fashion sense' and 'make their ends meet' are used correctly, but there is a reliance on simple, repetitive language. There are no attempts at sophisticated or less common lexical items. While the meaning is generally clear, the limited length restricts the opportunity to demonstrate a wider range of vocabulary, keeping the score at a Band 5 level.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The student uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, such as 'Famous personalities... which inspires many followers'. There are some grammatical errors, such as 'the number of factors like' (should be 'a number of factors') and 'spending huge amount' (missing an article: 'a huge amount'). Punctuation is generally functional, but the limited length means there is not enough evidence of a wide range of complex structures to warrant a higher score. The errors present do not significantly impede communication.

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

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