Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-08-24

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)

Nowadays, an increasing number of people with health issues are trying alternative medicines and treatments instead of visiting their usual professional doctor. I believe this is a negative development because alternative treatments may not have proper scientific evidence.

Some serious illnesses require professional medical treatment so relying only on alternative medicine can make the condition worse. As a result, health problems may increase and the general population can not lead a healthy life. For instance, many village people suffer from various health issues for taking alternative treatments that are not appropriate but those problems can be reduced or removed by proper medications prescribed by qualified doctor.

Another major reason is , alternative medicines may not have proper evidence or relevance and that can not cure the exact health issues. Without having proper diagnosis or prescription from the professional doctor diseases can not be identified. As a result, people are suffering from chronic diseases and the conditions getting even worse then previous for the wrong treatments. Moreover, alternative treatments are not from qualified doctor also the medicines can be inaccurate for the exact problem. For example, someone with a serious illness may spend time trying unproven remedies instead of getting an early medical diagnosis.

In conclusion, I believe that this is a negative development because unproven treatments or improper medications can not improve the health condition even this can be lead to serious health issues and taking random medicines without proper knowledge lead people's life in danger.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0

The response addresses the prompt by taking a clear position that the trend is negative. However, the essay falls slightly short of the 250-word minimum requirement, which impacts the depth of development. While the main ideas—lack of scientific evidence and the risks of delaying professional diagnosis—are relevant, they are somewhat repetitive. The arguments could be more fully extended with more specific examples or nuanced reasoning to reach a higher band. Because the length requirement was not met, the development of ideas feels constrained, leading to a score that reflects partial development.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, each with a clear focus. Cohesive devices such as 'For instance,' 'Another major reason,' and 'In conclusion' are used to signal the progression of ideas. However, the flow is occasionally mechanical, and some transitions feel repetitive. Referencing is generally clear, but the connection between sentences could be smoother to improve the overall readability. The paragraphing is appropriate, but the limited length prevents a more sophisticated structure.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is adequate for the task but lacks variety and precision. There is a reliance on basic terms like 'health issues,' 'health problems,' and 'serious illness,' which are repeated throughout the text. While the meaning is always clear, there is little attempt to use less common or more sophisticated lexical items. Collocations are generally accurate, but the range is limited, which prevents the essay from demonstrating the flexibility required for higher bands.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. However, there are frequent grammatical errors, such as 'for taking alternative treatments' (should be 'due to taking'), 'conditions getting even worse then previous' (should be 'than previously'), and 'this can be lead to' (should be 'this can lead to'). Punctuation is also inconsistent, particularly with comma placement. While these errors do not prevent the reader from understanding the message, they are frequent enough to limit the score.

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

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