Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-09-07

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)

Today, many people with health issues are taking different medicines and treatments rather than visiting their doctor and asking for a prescription. This development has some positive consequences, but it has more negative consequences. Its advantages include first-aid treatments at home while disadvantages include more health problems in later life.

There are only few positive aspects, which includes that it will provide faster results. Visiting a health professional is not always available for everyone, so taking alternative medicines will give faster results. For example, if a person has severe headache, and he has no facility to visit a doctor at that time, he will prefer to take a painkiller to get relief from pain for some time.

In contrast, taking alternative pills have adverse effects on a person's health. Finding a root cause of health issues is very important for a person's life. When people keep taking various medicines that are not even related to their problem, they will not be able to find a root cause of their issue and gradually it will become a serious life-threatening issue. For instance, painkillers are widely used in Pakistan and they are considered as a treatment of every problem, but they have severe side-effects on organs such as kidneys, liver and heart.

In conclusion, only a health care professional can give solutions to health problems. So, rather than taking medicines on our own, we should prefer to take a proper prescription from a doctor and get ourselves checked properly so that we can detect any future problems, and prevent them.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses the prompt by identifying the trend as a negative development. The position is clear throughout. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited. While you mention that alternative medicine provides 'faster results' and 'pain relief', the explanation is brief. The counter-argument regarding the 'root cause' of health issues is more effectively developed with a specific example from Pakistan. To reach a higher band, ensure that both sides of the argument are explored with equal depth and that the conclusion directly synthesises the main points rather than simply restating the need for doctors.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay is logically organised into clear paragraphs, each with a distinct focus. You use some cohesive devices such as 'In contrast', 'For example', and 'In conclusion' to guide the reader. However, the flow between sentences is sometimes mechanical, and the use of referencing could be more sophisticated. For instance, the transition between the introduction and the first body paragraph is abrupt. Improving the variety of linking words and ensuring that each paragraph has a strong topic sentence would enhance the overall coherence and cohesion of the response.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, allowing you to express your ideas clearly. You use some topic-specific terms like 'prescription', 'health professional', and 'life-threatening'. However, the range is somewhat limited, and there is some repetition of basic words like 'problems' and 'medicines'. To improve, try to incorporate more precise synonyms and collocations, such as 'symptoms' instead of 'problems' or 'self-medication' instead of 'taking alternative medicines'. The current range is sufficient for communication but lacks the flexibility required for a higher band.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

You demonstrate a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are several grammatical errors, such as subject-verb agreement issues (e.g., 'taking alternative pills have' should be 'has', and 'which includes' should be 'which include'). Additionally, there are minor punctuation and article errors throughout the text. While these errors do not impede communication, they occur frequently enough to prevent a higher score. Focusing on proofreading for subject-verb agreement and consistent verb tense usage will help improve your accuracy.

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

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