Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-10-15

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 times, people are more concern about their health. If they are not getting satisfactory result after taking medicine, they change their medication instead of regularly visit their doctors. As a result, there are some negative developments occur, that will be discussed in the following paragraphs.

One of the main reasons why people prefer alternative medicines is that they believe these treatments are more natural and have fewer side effects than conventional medical treatments. For example, some people use herbal remedies for their minor health problem instead of consulting doctor. In addition, they may think that choosing of an alternative treatment may be cheaper than the conventional medical care.

The first and foremost disadvantage due to the frequently change of regular medicine is that they suffer from financial instability. Medical treatment required enough money to cure diseases. When patient change their medical advisors, they asked to patient for unnecessary reports which is already done. These whole processes happen again which effect on their budget. Furthermore, the delaying of diagnosis which leads to serious health problem or may lead to death. Some disease showed basic symptoms in early stage which cannot be understand by non-medical person and ignorance of that create serious concern for individuals' health. For instance, in early stage of cancer, such symptoms like headache and vomiting which are very common for minor sickness and later these create crucial health problem.

To conclude, there are some reasons for use of other medicine such as use of natural medication instead of chemical treatment, they think alternative process may be cheaper. As a result, they face financial problems as well as the delaying in diagnosis which create negative impression on person's health.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

Your position is clear: you regard the growing use of alternative treatments instead of seeing a regular doctor as negative, and you give relevant reasons, including repeated medical costs and delayed diagnosis. The cancer example helps illustrate the possible consequences of overlooking symptoms. However, the response only partly develops the task: the opening refers to people changing medication after unsatisfactory results, which is not quite the same as choosing alternative treatment instead of visiting a doctor. The reasons for choosing alternatives are mentioned, but the essay does not explain them in much depth or clearly connect them to your overall argument. Develop each point with a fuller explanation and make the comparison with conventional medical care explicit.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a recognisable structure, with an introduction, a paragraph explaining why people choose alternatives, a paragraph outlining disadvantages, and a conclusion. The progression from possible motivations to negative consequences is generally easy to follow, and phrases such as “For example” and “Furthermore” help signal relationships. Some connections are less clear or mechanical, however. The opening says people change medication, while the main discussion focuses on alternative treatments; this weakens continuity. The conclusion repeats the earlier points rather than drawing them together, and “As a result” does not clearly connect the stated reasons to the consequences. Use more precise referencing and make the links between each reason and its effect explicit.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant topic vocabulary, including “alternative medicines,” “conventional medical treatments,” “herbal remedies,” “diagnosis,” and “financial instability.” This gives you enough language to discuss the issue, and some choices, such as “delaying of diagnosis,” show an attempt to express more specific ideas. However, several word forms and collocations are noticeably inaccurate or awkward, including “more concern about their health,” “satisfactory result,” “frequently change,” and “create negative impression.” These sometimes make the intended meaning less natural or precise. Aim to learn common word partnerships and check whether a noun, verb, or adjective form is needed. More precise phrasing would also help distinguish changing prescribed medication from choosing alternative treatment.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and complex sentences, including a conditional opening (“If they are not getting…”) and a relative clause about symptoms. This shows some range, but control is inconsistent, and errors occur across the response. Examples include “people are more concern,” “instead of regularly visit,” “When patient change,” and “they asked to patient,” where agreement, verb forms, articles, or sentence construction need correction. The sentence beginning “Some disease showed basic symptoms” is also difficult to follow because its clauses are not joined clearly. Practise accurate subject–verb agreement, articles, and verb patterns after “instead of,” then check each sentence for a complete, logically connected structure. Greater accuracy in these areas would make your ideas easier to understand.

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