Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 13 · 2026-08-04

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Living in a country where you have to speak a foreign language can cause serious social problems, as well as practical problems.

To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement?

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

Student answer (Band 5.5)

Learning a new language is always one of the most hectic issues one has to face while living in a new country. I admit that it may cause some practical as well as social problems in case the new migrants are not able to speak to a certain extent.

Firstly, a person can only survive in a new community if he is able to communicate with the individuals living there already. Being not able to talk can bring some serious issues that you can not avoid without learning the language. It is crucial to speak a foreign language even for your basic everyday needs, such as going for grocery shopping you'd have to speak and convey what you exactly want. For instance, a friend of mine is now living in Germany for a long time. He's good now but at the time he was just there, he wasn't even able to call a taxi.

Additionally, for the well being of a society, it is important that people living there communicate with each other on various topics and factors. It builds a stronger bond between them as keeping them close to each other. A person who is not able to talk their language would never win their trust which may result in creating some social issues as well.

Overall, I believe that living in a new country and speaking a foreign language can bring you some serious issues for the first few months. Because once you are able to speak, you'd definitely fit in the society and gradually become a part of it.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses the prompt by acknowledging both social and practical problems associated with language barriers. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited. While you provide a relevant example regarding a friend in Germany, the discussion on social issues remains quite general and lacks depth. To reach a higher band, you should expand on the 'social' aspect by discussing specific consequences, such as isolation or difficulty integrating into the workforce. The position is clear, but the supporting arguments could be more thoroughly explored to fully satisfy the requirements of the task.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is logically organized with a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. You use basic cohesive devices such as 'Firstly', 'Additionally', and 'Overall' to signal the progression of your argument. However, the flow between sentences is sometimes mechanical, and the use of referencing could be more sophisticated. For instance, the transition in the second paragraph regarding the friend's experience feels slightly abrupt. Improving the variety of linking words and ensuring that each paragraph has a more cohesive internal structure would enhance the overall readability and logical flow of your writing.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

Your vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, allowing you to convey your meaning clearly. You use some topic-specific terms like 'migrants', 'communicate', and 'social issues'. However, the range is somewhat limited, and there is a reliance on simpler phrasing, such as 'hectic issues' or 'good now'. To improve, try to incorporate more precise academic vocabulary and collocations. For example, instead of 'hectic issues', you could use 'significant challenges' or 'daunting obstacles'. Expanding your range to include more nuanced expressions will help you achieve a higher score in this criterion.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

You demonstrate a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While your meaning is generally clear, there are several grammatical inaccuracies, such as 'Being not able to talk' (should be 'Being unable to speak') and 'at the time he was just there' (should be 'when he first arrived'). Additionally, there are minor issues with article usage and prepositional phrasing. While these errors do not impede communication, they occur frequently enough to prevent a higher band. Focusing on subject-verb agreement and refining your use of complex sentence structures will help improve your accuracy.

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

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