Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 13 · 2026-09-18

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)

Nowadays some individuals beleives that History is most crucial subject for academic learner while others agrees that Science and technology are beneficial than history. In my opinion both have its own advantages which can't be fullfill by other.

If we talk about history this subject plays a crucial role as it connects us with our past.

We get to know about how our ancestors lived , the cultures and traditions they follow and most important how brave they were. And according to me this is most important for a individual to know about their past as it is important for knowledge as well as it keep a person bounded to their ancestors. For instance , If in future history will not be taught to yhe students they will never come to know about how their country got independence and what their freedom fighters had done to them by sacrificing their own lives . Moreover they will also not be familiar about the british rule over the country anf how many Indians sacrificed their lives to make their country independent from Britishers and Mughals

On the other hand if we talk about science than it also plays a major advantage in our lives which cannot be replaced by any other subject. Since it is a modern world and we are a part of it. So we have to evolve ourselves according to that . Our country is a developing country and if we dont take science as a serious subject that in future we will not able to compete with the developed modern world. For instance , in future the technical advancements are more so if we lack in science we will not able to co-operate worldwide.

To conclude i must say that both History and science are essential and students have to focus on both and knowledge of both is crucial for their future

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The student addresses all parts of the task by discussing both the importance of history and the value of science and technology, while also providing a personal opinion in the introduction and conclusion. However, the ideas are relatively basic and lack deep extension. For example, the arguments regarding history focus mainly on ancestral connection and national independence, while the points on science emphasize global competition without extensive elaboration. While a clear position is presented, the support tends to rely on general statements rather than fully developed arguments, placing the response firmly in Band 6.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0

The essay has a coherent overall arrangement, divided logically into an introduction, two body paragraphs representing each view, and a conclusion. However, cohesion is frequently faulty and mechanical. The student overuses basic connectors like 'If we talk about' and 'For instance,' and punctuation is often neglected, leading to run-on structures or missing commas (e.g., missing commas around clauses). Paragraphing is attempted, but internal cohesion lacks smooth transitions between ideas, making referencing occasionally unclear. These features align with the Band 5 descriptor.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

The vocabulary used is adequate for the task, with attempts to incorporate subject-specific terminology such as 'ancestors,' 'traditions,' 'independence,' and 'technical advancements.' However, there are noticeable lexical errors, such as spelling mistakes ('beleives,' 'yhe,' 'anf'), incorrect word forms ('academic learner' instead of learners, 'most crucial subject' missing articles), and awkward collocations like 'plays a major advantage.' The range is limited and repetitive, though it is minimally adequate for conveying the core message, corresponding to Band 5.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, utilizing conditional structures such as 'If in future history will not be taught...' However, grammatical control is weak, with frequent errors in verb tense consistency, subject-verb agreement ('history are essential' in the conclusion), and modal verb usage ('we will not able to co-operate'). Punctuation is also problematic, with missing periods and commas that disrupt the flow of sentences. While meaning is generally recoverable, the high frequency of errors places this response at Band 5.

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

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.