Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 14 · 2026-09-28

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Some people say that the main environmental problem of our time is the loss of particular species of plants and animals. Others say that there are more important environmental problems. Discuss both these views and give your own opinion.

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

Student answer (Band 5.0)

Some people say that the main environmental problem of our times is the loss of particular species of plants and animals. They might think that this was the main issue because at that time there were no other problems introduced. The environment was clean, peaceful and green , there was no habitat destruction.

From my perspective, i think there are other more important environmental problems. The ozone layer is being depleted by the ultravoilet radiations and i think it is a very alarming situation for all of our mankind. Moreover, the temperature of our earth is increasing day by day and due to this reason the summers time period is getting long with the passage of time while the winters come for a very short period of time.

Another major environmental issue is the destruction of the habit of different animal species including birds and animals. The forests and spacious agricultural lands are being cut to meet the human needs for housing societies. Deforestation is increasing day by day which results in the serious results of plants and tress loss. Due to the movement of people from the rural to urban areas, the increase in population leads to the sharp rise in the traffic vehicles in roads. It not only creates noise pollution but also air pollution which in turns causes serious complications in the human body. It causes severe heart problems, respiratory problems, asthma and many more major issues.

Besides from the loss of particular animals and plants species there are other major and detrimental environmental problems.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

The response addresses all parts of the task by discussing both views—the loss of species as the main problem versus other environmental issues—and provides the writer's own perspective. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited and lacks depth. For example, the explanation regarding the loss of species is very brief and historical claims like 'at that time there were no other problems introduced' are simplistic and under-developed. The writer does present alternative issues such as ozone depletion, global warming, and habitat destruction, but the arguments remain rather general without strong supporting examples. Consequently, the task response aligns best with a Band 5.5, as it addresses the prompt partially with limited and somewhat superficial idea development.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

The text demonstrates a basic overall progression, beginning with an introduction of the two views, moving into body paragraphs containing alternative problems, and ending with a brief concluding sentence. However, paragraphing and cohesion require improvement. The student writes 'Besides from the loss of particular animals and plants species there are other major...', which functions as a conclusion but is separated awkwardly or placed too abruptly. Cohesive devices are basic and sometimes repetitive, such as 'moreover' and 'day by day'. Referencing is occasionally unclear, as seen in the phrase 'at that time there were no other problems introduced' where the chronological anchor is confusing. Overall, the organizational structure reflects Band 5.0 to 5.5 characteristics due to mechanical cohesion and limited paragraph logic.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

The student uses a limited but minimally adequate range of vocabulary to discuss environmental topics, including terms like 'habitat destruction', 'ozone layer', 'deforestation', and 'air pollution'. However, there are noticeable word choice and collocation errors that detract from the writing. For instance, the phrase 'habit of different animal species' should be 'habitat', 'ultravoilet radiations' contains a spelling error and misuse of pluralisation, and 'summers time period' or 'traffic vehicles in roads' demonstrate awkward phrasing and unnatural collocations. Furthermore, there is inappropriate lowercase usage for 'i'. Because these lexical errors cause occasional difficulty for the reader and restrict precision, the vocabulary performance sits at a Band 5.0.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The essay displays a mix of simple and some attempted complex sentence structures. However, grammatical accuracy is weak, featuring frequent errors that frequently cause difficulty for the reader. Examples include 'i think there are other more important environmental problems' (capitalization error and basic clause linking), 'definitely results in the serious results of plants and tress loss' (awkward phrasing and repetition of 'results'), and 'which in turns causes' (subject-verb agreement/preposition error). Punctuation errors are also present, such as spacing issues before commas ('green , there'). While the meaning can generally be parsed after re-reading, the high frequency of errors prevents the grammar score from reaching Band 6.0, making Band 5.0 a more accurate reflection of current control.

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