Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 13 · 2026-09-23

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)

Foreign language has become more popular these days, as a result many individuals are practising other native languages such as French, English, British English and many more. Furthermore, Living in a country where you speak a other language apart from your native language can cause social problems and practical issues. I partially agree with the statement because learning new language can be more fascinating for a person. While, it can be challenging for other people as they are not found of other languages.

The benefits of learning or speaking other languages can boosts the persons personal and professional skills. Moreover, it helps the individual to communicate with the locals of that country. For instance, if a person is travelling to other country such as Germany then the individual should know German language. Learning new language is a skill as well as it is also a strategy. Furthermore, it helps individual to travel to other countries with freedom and confidence.

Although, as their are numerous advantages of foreign language but on the other hand their are many drawbacks to such as social problems and practical issues. One of the main social issue is that the people cannot understand the surrounding, which include the environment and the community locals.

Other issues that is people cannot find jobs in their respective fields, as a result economy of the country faces problems. The gross domestic product of the country gets declined because of less jobs facilities.

In conclusion, I believe that foreign language play a major role in the cultural and modern aspects.

It has both benefits and disadvantages

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

The response addresses the prompt by discussing the social and practical problems of living in a foreign-language-speaking country, while also touching upon the benefits. The writer takes a clear position ('I partially agree with the statement') in the introduction. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited and occasionally shifts focus. For instance, the second paragraph discusses the general benefits of learning languages rather than specifically addressing the social and practical problems caused by the barrier. Furthermore, the discussion on practical issues in the third paragraph touches briefly on job prospects and the economy without deep elaboration. This places the performance within Band 6, as the task is addressed, but certain ideas remain under-developed.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The essay displays a coherent overall arrangement with a recognisable introduction, body paragraphs, and conclusion. Paragraphing is utilised to separate distinct ideas, such as benefits in the second paragraph and drawbacks in the third. However, cohesion is sometimes mechanical or faulty. The writer relies heavily on transitional markers like 'Furthermore', 'Although, as their are numerous advantages...', and 'In conclusion', but some transitions feel abrupt or logically strained, such as starting the counter-argument with 'Although, as their are numerous advantages...'. Referencing is also occasionally unclear, such as 'Other issues that is people cannot find jobs...'. This warrants a Band 6 score for Coherence and Cohesion.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, attempting some less common items such as 'fascinating', 'professional skills', and 'gross domestic product'. However, there are notable lexical errors and inappropriate word choices throughout the text. Examples include 'found of' instead of 'fond of', 'boosts the persons personal' (grammatical and lexical awkwardness), and spelling or homophone errors like 'their are' instead of 'there are'. Repetition of basic terms such as 'foreign language', 'country', and 'individual' limits the lexical score. Because the vocabulary is adequate to convey meaning despite these frequent minor errors, a band score of 5.5 is appropriate.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The essay features a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating some variety. However, there is a persistent presence of grammatical and punctuation errors that occasionally distract the reader. Examples include plural/singular agreement issues ('Learning new language', 'other language apart from your native language'), incorrect prepositions ('travelling to other country such as Germany then the individual should know German language'), and confusion with articles and possessives ('the economy of the country faces problems', 'gross domestic product of the country gets declined'). Despite these mistakes, the meaning remains generally clear, fitting the descriptor for Band 5.5 well.

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

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