Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-09-03
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 a modern world, there is a growing trend about dealing with healthcare issues by taking alternative medicines and consider different treatments without taking advice of experts. Although this approach can be helpful for short-term diseases, I believe that overall it is a negative development because of concerned risks are associated with this view.
On the one hand for immediate solution to a problem, it can give a better results. For example, if someone experienced an accident, or struggling in breathing in certain situation or maybe drowned in water, fortunately saved, these certain circumstances required ultimate response to save a valuable life. Therefore using various techniques and taking available medicines can be crucial instead of waiting for an experienced doctor.
On the other hand by taking into account the significant advice from regular doctor is a more precise and accurate way to fight with diseases. In addition, to find a root cause of the health issues for a proper cure of disease, require medicines recommended by a specialist having expertise in a relevant field. For instance, a heart patient may take alternative medicine for first aid, it may give temporary relief but for a long-term solution visiting a heart specialist is the best approach.
In my opinion, however in a panic situation alternative remedies can be the best option, placing a greater emphasis on visiting a regular doctor is the most reliable approach because specialist advice or his reccommended medicines are based on experience and according to the profile of a patient. Instead in alternative medicines and treatments only a generally applied method is used for all individuals.
In conclusion, for immediate response other kind of related medicines or common treatments may have positive results. Nevertheless experts opinion can not be ignored
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The response addresses the prompt by taking a clear position that alternative medicine is a negative development, despite some benefits in emergencies. The ideas are relevant, but the development is somewhat uneven. For instance, the argument regarding 'immediate solutions' in the second paragraph is slightly confusing, as it conflates emergency first aid with 'alternative medicine' (which usually refers to non-conventional treatments like herbalism or homeopathy). The distinction between these concepts is blurred, which weakens the logical development of the argument. To improve, ensure that the examples provided directly support the specific topic of alternative medicine rather than general emergency response.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0
The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, each with a clear central topic. Cohesive devices such as 'On the one hand', 'In addition', and 'In conclusion' are used to guide the reader. However, the flow is occasionally interrupted by awkward phrasing, such as 'In a modern world, there is a growing trend about dealing with healthcare issues'. Additionally, some transitions feel mechanical. The referencing is generally clear, but the connection between the introduction and the body paragraphs could be smoother to ensure a more cohesive progression of ideas throughout the text.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The vocabulary is adequate for the task, allowing the writer to express their opinion clearly. There are attempts to use topic-specific language like 'alternative medicines', 'specialist', and 'long-term solution'. However, there are some inaccuracies in word choice and collocation, such as 'struggling in breathing' (should be 'struggling to breathe') and 'concerned risks are associated with this view' (should be 'risks associated with this view'). The range is sufficient to convey meaning, but lacks the precision and flexibility required for a higher band score.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are frequent grammatical errors that affect the fluency of the text. Examples include 'without taking advice of experts' (missing article 'the'), 'a heart patient may take alternative medicine for first aid, it may give temporary relief' (comma splice error), and 'experts opinion can not be ignored' (missing possessive apostrophe). These errors are noticeable but do not impede communication. To reach a higher band, the student should focus on subject-verb agreement, article usage, and avoiding comma splices.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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