Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-05
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)
As person getting older their habits and their opinions are getting alter over the time. I agree to this statement since they are getting older their mind is becoming like small children.
Firstly, as we know that most of the people after their 60's are going to be retired and in their particular phase they don't have anything to do, so their habits are going to changed. Although, the changes we see at that time in the behaviour as well as their mood. For instance, if they have some disease like diabetes and their children's restrict them for the sugary foods, we can see the anger in them if they don't get it same as the small toddler that do in his young age.Additionally, we also see the mood swings like if we are planning for as small trip they first say no, but after that they changed their mind to come.
Furthermore, we can also see switch in their opinion as they gain more experience. As a young person, they have a strong perspective towards the relationship, carrers or money based what they learned from their freind and family. for example talking abou the job, the youngster only believed that they high salary once was important for their future, but if they think about the what interest they have will find also good job.
In conclusion, I strongly agree that we can see the person can change their habits and opinions as they are getting older. This is mainly because of their responsibilities increase and the way of understanding life.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 6.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0
The response addresses all parts of the task by presenting a clear position agreeing with the prompt and discussing both habits and opinions. However, some ideas are more fully developed than others, which is typical of this level. For instance, the discussion on changing habits is supported with an example of an elderly person reacting to dietary restrictions, but the explanation comparing them to a toddler is somewhat simplistic. Similarly, the point about shifting opinions on careers is introduced with an example about high salaries, yet the logic regarding interests is a bit underdeveloped and lacks full elaboration. To move to a higher level, the ideas would need more extended support and deeper exploration without over-generalising.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0
The essay displays a coherent overall arrangement with a clear stance stated in the introduction and reinforced in the conclusion. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate different arguments, with body paragraphs focusing on habits and opinions respectively. However, cohesion is sometimes mechanical or faulty. For example, transition phrases like "Firstly", "Furthermore", and "In conclusion" are utilised to structure the essay, but referencing and internal links within paragraphs are not always smooth. Expressions such as "in their particular phase" or referencing "the youngster" create minor disruptions in the logical flow. To achieve a higher standard, the use of cohesive devices needs to be more flexible and natural, ensuring seamless progression throughout the text.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.0
The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, attempting some less common items such as "responsibilities", "perspective", and "restrictions". However, there are noticeable word-choice, word-form, and spelling errors that occasionally cause difficulty for the reader or require re-reading. Examples include "getting alter" instead of altered, "freind" instead of friend, "carrers" instead of careers, and awkward collocations like "high salary once was important". While communication is not severely impaired, these persistent inaccuracies in spelling and lexical selection restrict the score. To progress further, the writer should focus on expanding the range of less common vocabulary and ensuring greater precision in word forms and spelling.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0
The writing demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, attempting structures such as conditional and dependent clauses (e.g., "if they have some disease... we can see the anger"). There are frequent errors in grammar and punctuation that can cause difficulty for the reader, notably issues with subject-verb agreement, articles, and tense consistency. Examples include "As person getting older their habits and their opinions are getting alter", "most of the people after their 60's are going to be retired", and "the youngster only believed that they high salary". These frequent structural and agreement errors mean the grammar sits firmly within the bracket of having persistent inaccuracies that need attention. To improve, the student should work on sentence control, verb tense consistency, and article usage.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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