Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 13 · 2026-09-02

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)

Every country has there own language which helps the people of that country to communicate with each other. I strongly believed that if people were forced to speak in a foreign language can create many problem for people.

As in a country like India where there are many different language spoken in different part of country. But, it has a common language - 'National Language' which was spoken and known by every person in their country. And if people have to use foreign language it create barrier of communication between every person as people are not familiar about foreign language. For example, If a person have to buy a product from shop then it become hard for both buyer and seller to have a conversation like what is price of product, warranty and ask about use before; in different language which both do not known about it.

It also affect people job as employee have to speak into other language, and it also make them to lose their job just because of language regardless of their skill or abilities. It difficult for people to learn language other than regional as from childhood they were familiar and taught in there regional language only and after become a adult it is difficult to learn new language words and their pronunciation from the beginning.

To overcome such problem people should have freedom to speak in their national language as it is easy to understand and to speak to other person. The learning of foreign language is also beneficial to talk people living in other country.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses the prompt by discussing both social and practical problems associated with using a foreign language. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited. While you provide an example regarding shopping and employment, the arguments remain quite general and could be further extended with more specific analysis or nuanced examples. The position is clear throughout, but the depth of the argument is restricted by the repetitive nature of the points made. To reach a higher band, ensure that each paragraph introduces a distinct, well-supported point that directly relates to the prompt's focus on 'social' and 'practical' problems.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organized into paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the progression of ideas. However, the use of cohesive devices is often mechanical or inaccurate. For instance, the transition 'But, it has a common language' at the start of a sentence is grammatically weak, and the use of 'And if' to begin a sentence is informal. Referencing is sometimes unclear, such as in the phrase 'ask about use before', which lacks a clear antecedent. While there is an overall logical flow, the lack of sophisticated linking words and the occasional awkward phrasing make the cohesion feel somewhat disjointed.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task but lacks the range and precision required for higher bands. You rely on basic terms like 'problem', 'hard', and 'easy', which are repetitive. There are also issues with word choice and collocation, such as 'familiar about foreign language' (should be 'familiar with') and 'after become a adult' (should be 'after becoming an adult'). While the meaning is generally clear, the lack of less common lexical items and the presence of errors in word formation prevent a higher score. Expanding your vocabulary to include more academic collocations would be beneficial.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The essay contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors that occasionally impede the flow. Common issues include subject-verb agreement ('it create barrier', 'it also affect'), article usage ('in a country like India'), and tense consistency. The sentence 'If a person have to buy a product from shop then it become hard' contains multiple errors in verb form and article usage. While the meaning is usually understandable, the frequency of these errors is high, which limits the score. Focusing on basic grammatical accuracy and proofreading for subject-verb agreement would significantly improve your writing.

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

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