Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 13 · 2026-08-12

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Some people say History is one of the most important school subjects. Other people think that in today’s world subjects like Science and technology are more important than History.

Discuss both views and give your own opinion.

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant example form your own knowledge or experience.

Student answer (Band 5.5)

Firstly, it is argued by some people history is one of the most important school subjects. Because history is what happened to humanity in the past. And they are interested to know about the hardships that our forefathers had to go through. And they want to study about the armed conflicts between countries, kingdom, or groups that happened in the past and are recorded in historical books. And they believe that teaching our children about history is like preserving it in their brains. And main historical events like like world war 1 and 2 catch their attention. And studying about big empires that rules half of the world like Mongol empire and Roman empire feels interesting to them.

Secondly, there are some other people that think in modern world subjects like science and technology are the more beneficial. Because they believe that choosing science would help them to become professionals like doctors and scientists. And if they opt for technology they would become software engineers, It experts and data analyst. And selecting these fields would be more compatible with the present world.

In my opinion choosing science and technology would be more profitable according to present world's demands. I think we should know about our history but it is not the most important subject. And learning history can not even get you a more nuanced job, except becoming history teacher. And I believe humanity is moving towards a more technocratic world. So we have to be prepared for this. In a nutshell, in the contemporary world having tech knowledge is no longer optional.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses both views and provides a clear personal opinion. However, the development of ideas is somewhat superficial. The arguments for history are repetitive, focusing on 'interest' rather than the educational or societal value of the subject. Similarly, the arguments for science and technology are limited to career prospects. To reach a higher band, you should expand on the 'why' and 'how'—for example, explaining how history fosters critical thinking or how technology drives economic growth. The structure is clear, but the depth of analysis is consistent with a Band 5.5 or 6.0 level.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organised into clear paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the argument. However, the use of cohesive devices is mechanical and repetitive. Many sentences begin with 'And' or 'Because', which creates a disjointed flow rather than a sophisticated logical progression. There is a lack of varied linking words (e.g., 'furthermore', 'consequently', 'on the other hand'). While the overall arrangement is coherent, the internal cohesion within paragraphs relies too heavily on simple conjunctions, which limits the score.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task but lacks variety and precision. You rely on simple terms like 'important', 'interesting', and 'good'. There are some attempts at topic-specific vocabulary, such as 'technocratic' and 'nuanced', which is positive. However, there are also minor errors in word choice and collocation, such as 'rules half of the world' (should be 'ruled') and 'get you a more nuanced job'. Expanding your range of collocations and using more academic synonyms would significantly improve your score.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The essay relies heavily on simple sentence structures. There are frequent grammatical errors, particularly with sentence fragments (e.g., 'Because history is what happened to humanity in the past.') and subject-verb agreement (e.g., 'big empires that rules'). Punctuation is also inconsistent, with unnecessary commas and repetitive sentence starts. While the meaning is generally clear, the lack of complex sentence structures and the frequency of basic grammatical errors prevent a higher score. Focusing on combining simple sentences into complex ones using relative clauses or subordinating conjunctions is essential.

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