Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-03
IELTS Writing Task 2 question
It is very common for people to change both their habits and their opinions as they get older.
Do you agree or disagree?
Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.
Student answer (Band 5.5)
Elderhood that comes with several changes and is regarded as an important phase of our lives. While there is an ongoing debate about whether it has increasingly become prevalent for elderly people to transform their habits and perspectives with every passing year, I completely agree with this view since elderly people are more likely to become vulnerable due to age-related changes.
One of the primary reasons for significant change in the habits elderly individuals is that they become susceptible to several psychological and physical conditions. Many elderly people remain to continue similar habits that they have been doing since their childhood; however, they are less likely to remain committed to them due to some natural body changes or a lack of family support. This can discourage them from continuing these habits and result in a significant change in habits. For instance, an elderly individual who are habituated to exercise in gym may enable to join fitness center due to unexpected physical changes and muscle weakness.
Another significant factor associated with the biggest change in the elderly individuals' opinions is that they get natural change in their behavior and develop a greater sense of forget. Elderly individuals are generally free from any serious responsibility and do not have to use their brain intelligently, which can lead them to forget about what happening surrounding them. Consequently, they are more likely to change their opinions that differ with every situations. For instance, an elderly individuals who often forget about their opinions and reviews for food mainly because of mental changes.
In conclusion, I strongly agree that changes in habits and opinions can be observed in the way elderly people behave because it is automatic process that change with age.
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 agreeing that habits and opinions change with age. However, the development of ideas is inconsistent. The first body paragraph discusses physical limitations, which is relevant, but the second paragraph is confusing. The argument that elderly people 'do not have to use their brain intelligently' and 'forget about what happening surrounding them' is not a logical or well-supported explanation for why opinions change. The ideas are somewhat underdeveloped and rely on generalizations that lack clarity. To improve, ensure that each paragraph provides a clear, logical link between the aging process and the specific change in habits or opinions.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0
The essay is organized into paragraphs, and there is a clear introduction and conclusion. Cohesive devices such as 'For instance' and 'Consequently' are used, but they are sometimes applied mechanically or in contexts where the logic is weak. For example, the transition 'Consequently, they are more likely to change their opinions' does not follow naturally from the preceding claim about forgetfulness. Additionally, some sentences are disjointed, such as the opening sentence which lacks a main verb. Improving the logical flow between sentences and ensuring that cohesive devices accurately reflect the relationship between ideas will help achieve a higher band score.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task but lacks precision and sophistication. There are instances of awkward phrasing, such as 'Elderhood that comes with several changes' and 'develop a greater sense of forget'. The term 'forget' is used incorrectly as a noun here. While the student attempts to use topic-specific vocabulary, the word choices often feel unnatural or imprecise. To improve, focus on learning collocations related to aging and cognitive development, and ensure that words are used in their correct grammatical form (e.g., using 'forgetfulness' instead of 'forget').
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The essay contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors that occasionally impede clarity. Examples include subject-verb agreement issues ('an elderly individual who are habituated', 'an elderly individuals who often forget') and awkward sentence construction ('may enable to join fitness center'). Punctuation is generally acceptable, but the grammatical control is inconsistent. To improve, focus on subject-verb agreement and the correct use of modal verbs. Reviewing basic sentence patterns will help reduce the frequency of these errors and improve the overall readability of the text.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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