Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-28

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)

Certain individuals believe that it is very common for humans to change their habits and their thinking as they get older. I completely agree with this statement because it is totally dependent on age.

Firstly, older people have been doing their work for many years. So, it is difficult to change that because they think they know more than we do. For example, many years ago, technology was not developed. That's the reason they do things by hand, such as washing clothes, washing dishes, and grinding spices. Furthermore, at that time, they were very strict with their children. For instance, they were not allowed to go outside and hang out, but now the modern era is different. They cannot tackle the same thing.

After that, it is very hard to change their opinion. According to research, the age gap between adults and older people is clearly shown in their opinions. Because older people think as they understand, instead of younger people. For instance, according to older people, going to work was not allowed for women. They think women should do childcare and be a housewife. They also do not allow girls to go to university. Because they think it is not necessary for girls; they have to just make food at home.

In conclusion, I am completely sure that because of the age gap, it is very natural to change their habits and their opinion as they get older.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

The response addresses the prompt by discussing whether people change habits and opinions as they get older, adopting a clear position in agreement. However, there is a minor confusion in the student's argument: the prompt asks whether individuals change as they age, but the student's body paragraphs actually argue that older people refuse to change and retain old habits and opinions (e.g., regarding technology and women working). This slight misinterpretation of the direction of change prevents the ideas from being fully developed. Furthermore, the length requirement of 250 words is not met, as the response contains only 239 words. Consequently, these factors limit the task achievement score to a 5.5.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The text is arranged with an introduction, two body paragraphs, and a conclusion, showing an attempt at overall organisation. However, the logical progression is occasionally faulty. Transition markers like "Firstly," "After that,": and "In conclusion" are used, but the linkage between ideas within paragraphs can be mechanical or unclear. For instance, the transition "After that" feels abrupt when introducing the concept of opinions. Paragraphing is present, but the internal cohesion requires better referencing and signposting to guide the reader smoothly through the arguments. Therefore, a score of 5.5 is appropriate for coherence and cohesion.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The vocabulary used is adequate for the task, featuring recognizable terms such as "technology," "household," and "generation gap" (implied). However, the range is limited and repetitive, with frequent reliance on basic words and phrases like "things," "do," and "very." There are also some awkward collocations and word choices, such as "tackle the same thing" when referring to adapting to the modern era, and "make food at home" instead of preparing meals. While the vocabulary allows the writer to convey basic points, it lacks the precision and flexibility required for higher bands, justifying a score of 5.5.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, including conditional and subordinate clauses (e.g., "because it is totally dependent on age" and "According to research, the age gap..."). However, there are frequent grammatical errors and awkward phrasings that detract from clarity. Examples include "older people have been doing their work for many years. So, it is difficult to change that because they think they know more than we do" and "they were not allowed to go outside." Punctuation errors, such as sentence fragments and comma splices, also occur. These recurring inaccuracies limit the grammatical score to a 5.0.

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