Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 13 · 2026-08-05

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)

There is no gainsaying the fact that living in a different country, there is a mandatory need to speak a foreign language, which can cause social and practical problems. I personally agree with this given statement.

At the outset, there are major problems for people who live in a different country, especially when is to speaking in their native language. It is very hard for some people. For instance, people face difficulties communicating and socialising with other native speakers. Moreover, finding jobs in another country would be hard for them because they have to communicate in their languages so they do not have a job. For example, a student who just wants to work as a part-timer because of the language barrier he or she does not get that job.

However, some people believe that speaking a foreign language is a good skill to have to converse with people. Nonetheless, it is not the only skill that should be prioritised because it is an individual choice for someone to speak. Instead, learning new skills that provide value to economic growth and revenue generation.

In conclusion, I completely agree with the statement that people face a lot of difficulties in speaking a foreign language, and it can be embarrassing and harm their self-confidence. They should focus on more critical skills rather than learning a language because it's just a language to speak with others, not a technical one

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0

The response addresses the prompt but fails to meet the minimum word count requirement of 250 words, which negatively impacts the development of ideas. While you clearly state your position, the arguments remain somewhat superficial. For instance, the discussion on 'economic growth' in the third paragraph is disconnected from the main topic of social and practical problems caused by language barriers. To improve, you need to expand on your points with more detailed explanations and specific examples. The conclusion also introduces a new, slightly contradictory argument about language not being a 'technical' skill, which is not well-integrated into the previous paragraphs.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organised into paragraphs, which is a positive step. However, the logical progression between ideas is sometimes weak. While you use some cohesive devices like 'At the outset', 'Moreover', and 'In conclusion', the transitions between sentences can feel mechanical or abrupt. For example, the shift from discussing job difficulties to the counter-argument about language being a 'good skill' lacks a smooth logical bridge. Additionally, some referencing is unclear, such as the phrase 'it is an individual choice for someone to speak', which does not clearly link back to the previous context of living in a foreign country.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

Your vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, allowing you to communicate your main points. However, the range is limited, and there is a reliance on simple, repetitive phrasing. You use some basic collocations like 'social problems' and 'practical problems', but there is a lack of more sophisticated or precise vocabulary that would demonstrate a higher level of proficiency. Phrases like 'it's just a language to speak with others' are quite informal and lack the academic tone expected in an IELTS essay. Expanding your vocabulary to include more topic-specific terminology would significantly improve your score.

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. For example, 'especially when is to speaking in their native language' is grammatically incorrect and confusing. There are also issues with subject-verb agreement and sentence fragments, such as 'Instead, learning new skills that provide value to economic growth and revenue generation', which lacks a main verb. While the meaning is generally understandable, the frequency of these errors prevents the essay from reaching a higher band. Focusing on sentence construction and proofreading for basic errors will be beneficial.

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

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