Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 13 · 2026-08-19

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)

It is argued that living in a non-native country can result in major difficulties both socially and practically because of the language barriers. I completely agree with this stance and this essay will explain why.

First of all, a person cannot understand as much foreign language as it understands its homeland's language. No one has the ability to understand the emotions in a different language. Cultural activities include literature, and language based on native language. Literature is the part that can only be understood with one having deep-feelings, and strong grip on a language. For example, a Pakistani person can understand poetry in Urdu and it will catch its attention, but, when it listens to English-poetry, it will call it rubbish because he is not able to understand that. In conclusion, understanding a culture requires a firm grip on language and literature of that culture, which is nearly impossible.

In addition to cultural difficulties, there are several problems which can happen during practical life. At workplaces, workers have to talk very fluently, and formally. No matter how much a person tries to understand a second language, it can never be more fluent than a native person. Company prefers the individual with more language skill and it will put a limit to a foreigner person to get promotion quickly. Also, during daily life activities, such as buying grocery and dealing with people in multiple scenarios can also be disrupted by language barrier. For example, a Pakistani person who is living in abroad can never be as successful there in social and practical aspects as he can be here in its own motherland.

In conclusion, living abroad can cause issues in both social and practical life due to changed language. It is because a person can never become expert in a second language and it is crucial in both ways.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

You have clearly stated your position and addressed both social and practical aspects of the prompt. However, the development of your ideas is somewhat limited. For instance, your argument that one can never fully master a second language is a strong claim that requires more nuanced support, as many people do achieve high levels of proficiency. The example regarding poetry is relevant but could be expanded to better illustrate the 'social' problems mentioned. To reach a higher band, ensure that your arguments are balanced and avoid over-generalizations, such as claiming it is 'nearly impossible' to understand a foreign culture, which may weaken the logical foundation of your essay.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay is organized into clear paragraphs, and there is a logical progression from cultural issues to practical workplace challenges. You use basic cohesive devices like 'First of all', 'In addition', and 'In conclusion' to guide the reader. However, the use of referencing is occasionally awkward, such as using 'it' to refer to a person (e.g., 'it will call it rubbish'). Improving the variety of your linking words and ensuring that pronouns clearly refer to their intended nouns would enhance the flow and cohesion of your writing.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'language barriers', 'fluently', and 'disrupted'. However, there are some issues with word choice and collocation. For example, 'living in abroad' is grammatically incorrect (it should be 'living abroad'), and 'it will put a limit to a foreigner person' is unnatural phrasing. You rely on some repetitive vocabulary, such as 'understand' and 'language'. To improve, try to incorporate more precise synonyms and collocations, and pay closer attention to the correct usage of prepositions and articles.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent errors that occasionally affect the clarity of your message. Common issues include subject-verb agreement (e.g., 'Company prefers' instead of 'Companies prefer') and the incorrect use of pronouns (e.g., referring to a person as 'it'). While these errors do not completely impede communication, they are persistent. To achieve a higher band, focus on mastering basic sentence construction, particularly the use of articles and the correct gendered pronouns for people, and aim for more error-free complex sentences.

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

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