Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-08-12
IELTS Writing Task 2 question
Nowadays, a growing number of people with health problems are trying alternative medicines and treatments instead of visiting their usual doctor.
Do you think this is a positive or a negative development?
Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.
Student answer (Band 5.5)
in recent days, a huge number of individuals having health concerning issues are taking medications and treatments on their own rather than visiting their casual physicians. proper medications and treatments play vital roles in the overall well being of the human body. in this essay i will discuss about the negative development of this approach.
i believe that people should not take alternative medicines and treatments. In fact they should visit their family doctors because WRONG MEDICINES AND TREATMENTS CAN CAUSE DRASTIC changes in human body which can lead to failure of many organs and body functions. for example one of my friends get kidney failure because she took medicines on her own. so people should avoid to do self medications and treatments.
on the other hand i consider that people should visit their family physicians. because if they visit their doctors, it will be beneficial for them. doctors prescribe the medicines according to the real cause in the body due to which body can perform well without any further complications. for instance, my cousin visited the dermatologist for his allergy problems. he got well so soon because he took medicines accordingly to the body problem.
in conclusion, others believe that people should take medicines andtreatments on their own but i believe that people should get check up from their usual doctors so they can be avoided from further complications.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0
The response addresses the prompt by taking a clear position against alternative medicine. However, the essay is under the 250-word minimum, which significantly impacts the development of ideas. While the main arguments regarding safety and professional expertise are relevant, they are underdeveloped and rely on simple anecdotal evidence rather than a broader discussion of the topic. The conclusion is repetitive and does not add new insight. To improve, you must expand your arguments with more detailed explanations and ensure you meet the word count requirement to allow for a more comprehensive exploration of the topic.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The essay is organised into paragraphs, which is a positive step. However, the use of cohesive devices is quite mechanical and repetitive (e.g., 'for example', 'on the other hand', 'in conclusion'). The flow between sentences is sometimes abrupt, and the logical progression of ideas is hindered by the brevity of the paragraphs. While the central idea of each paragraph is clear, the lack of sophisticated linking words and varied transition phrases makes the writing feel somewhat disjointed. Improving the variety of cohesive devices will help the text flow more naturally.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The vocabulary is generally functional but limited. You rely on basic terms like 'health concerning issues' and 'casual physicians', which are not natural collocations. There are also some errors in word choice, such as 'avoided from further complications' instead of 'avoid further complications'. While the meaning is generally clear, there is a lack of less common or academic vocabulary that would demonstrate a higher level of proficiency. To reach a higher band, focus on learning topic-specific collocations and more precise academic terminology.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The essay contains a mix of simple and some complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors. Examples include 'one of my friends get kidney failure' (tense error), 'avoid to do self medications' (incorrect verb pattern), and 'medicines accordingly to the body problem' (incorrect preposition). Punctuation is also inconsistent, with some sentences lacking proper capitalization. While these errors do not completely impede communication, they are frequent enough to lower the score. You should focus on subject-verb agreement, correct verb patterns, and consistent punctuation.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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