Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-09-25

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, a large number of people facing health issues are using alternative medicines and treatments while not visiting their primary physician. I believe that this is a positive development because trying new doctors will be beneficial for patients, as they will assess them accordingly and will treat them in modern ways rather than traditional treatments.

Today, every family has their own physician, and they trust only in his medicine, which is sometimes not very effective. The traditional doctors are mostly specialized in one category; therefore, they are not able to treat patients with health issues. For instance, my grandmother was suffering from obesity, and she used numerous medicines from our home doctor, but he could not treat her properly, so we went to the specialized surgeon, and he completed his treatment. My grandmother has now lost around two-fifths of her fat. So, choosing the right doctor can sometimes relieve patients facing health problems.

Another reason for changing the antibiotics is that sometimes the medicines patients are using become ineffective because the bacteria and viruses in our body show no response to the regularly used antibiotics, which ultimately increases the risk of diseases. For example, many researchers have published articles and stated that when viruses become resistant to certain medicines, it becomes more dangerous for the body. So, it can be treated only by using alternative antibiotics and pills. By doing this, patients can be successfully treated and the risk of further disease spread in the body can be reduced.

To summarize this, patients who are using alternative medicines can recover to a healthier life easily. Antibiotics can become ineffective in certain cases, which leads to further health risks. I believe that treatment from specialised doctors are very helpful rather than getting treatment from a traditional doctor.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

The response addresses the prompt by taking a clear position that trying alternative medicines and treatments is a positive development. However, there is a fundamental conceptual misunderstanding throughout the essay regarding the prompt's meaning of 'alternative medicines and treatments instead of visiting their usual doctor.' The student interprets 'alternative medicines' and 'visiting their usual doctor' as meaning seeing different types of medical doctors or specialists, rather than referring to alternative therapies such as herbalism, acupuncture, or homeopathy. Despite this misinterpretation of the core topic, the student presents a relevant position and supports it with a personal example about a grandmother seeing a specialist. Ideas are extended, though the argument conflates seeing a specialist with alternative medicine. Consequently, the task response is limited by this misinterpretation, fitting a Band 5.5 to 6.0 profile.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The essay displays a coherent overall arrangement with a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and a concluding summary. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate different supporting points. However, logical progression is occasionally hindered by the misunderstanding of key concepts, and cohesive devices are sometimes mechanical or repetitive, such as the frequent use of 'For example' and 'So'. Referencing is generally clear, but transitional phrases lack variety and sophistication. Overall, the structural framework is logical enough to ensure the reader can follow the main train of thought without excessive difficulty, placing it firmly in the Band 6.0 category.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully incorporating terms such as 'primary physician', 'specialized surgeon', 'antibiotics', and 'resistant'. However, there are notable lexical inaccuracies and awkward phrasing that reveal limitations in word choice and collocation. For instance, the phrase 'changing the antibiotics' is used inaccurately to describe switching medications or seeing a different doctor, and 'lost around two-fifths of her fat' is unnatural. Spelling is generally accurate, and communication is not severely impeded, but the misuse of specific medical and descriptive terms prevents the score from reaching a higher band. This represents a solid Band 6.0 performance for lexical resource.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The writer demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, utilizing relative clauses and conditional structures such as 'when viruses become resistant to certain medicines, it becomes more dangerous for the body.' There are several grammatical errors and awkward structures throughout the text, including tense usage and prepositional errors like 'trust only in his medicine' and 'treatment from specialised doctors are very helpful.' Although these errors are noticeable, they rarely impede overall communication, and the meaning remains comprehensible. The variety of structures combined with frequent minor errors aligns well with the descriptors for Band 6.0.

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

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