Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-09-28

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Nowadays, many medical research projects are funded by private companies. In your opinion, do you think that research should be carried by private companies, individuals or government?

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

Student answer (Band 5.0)

Many governments believe that economic growth should be their highest priority, while some people argue that progress in other areas is also vital for a country's prosperity.

While economic advancement undoubtedly enhances living standards, neglecting factors such as the work environment can jeopardize long-term success.

On the one hand, a stronger economy means a higher standard of living. By focusing on growing the economy, the government can create many employment opportunities for its citizens. This allows them to earn more money to buy the things they need in their daily lives and to live comfortably. However, I think if the economy remains the sole focus of a government, many social issues will arise.

On the other hand, it is argued that, to have a sustainable economy, progress in other fields, such as the work environment, should not be overlooked. Consider Japan, where

employees are often compelled to work long hours, leaving little time for personal life.

This imbalance between work and personal life has resulted in many social issues,

including high rates of suicide and low rates of fertility. Consequently, Japan now faces the challenge of having an aging and uncreative workforce that is unable to

sustain its economic growth. I agree with this side of the argument because a sustainable economy is the key to achieving long-term prosperity.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 3.0

The response is significantly under the required word count, containing only 219 words compared to the minimum of 250 words. This necessitates a penalty under Task Achievement. Furthermore, there is a fundamental mismatch between the prompt provided and the text written. The prompt asks whether medical research should be funded by private companies, individuals, or the government. However, the student's essay discusses whether government economic growth should be prioritised over work-environment balance and social issues. Consequently, the task has not been addressed, and the ideas presented are entirely off-topic. Because the prompt is ignored, the position is not clear in relation to the specific task instructions, resulting in a low score for Task Achievement.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

Despite being off-topic regarding the prompt, the text itself exhibits a clear logical structure and paragraphing. The student uses introductory and concluding statements, along with standard cohesive devices such as 'On the one hand', 'On the other hand', and 'Consequently', which effectively guide the reader through the paragraphs. Ideas are logically sequenced within the student's own framework of economic growth versus work-life balance. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate different arguments. While the overall text fails to address the actual task prompt, the internal coherence and mechanical use of paragraphing and signposting language demonstrate a higher level of organisational skill than the basic descriptors indicate, though cohesion is somewhat mechanical.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary for general communication. Words and phrases such as 'economic advancement', 'enhances living standards', 'employment opportunities', and 'sustainable economy' are used appropriately. There are also attempts to use less common items like 'compelled', 'fertility', and 'uncreative workforce'. Spelling and word choice are generally accurate, and vocabulary does not impede communication. However, because the vocabulary is deployed in an essay that fails to answer the prompt about medical research funding, the lexical choices cannot be credited toward fulfilling the specific task, keeping the score within the moderate range.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

The writer displays a good mix of simple and complex sentence structures. Examples of complex sentences include 'By focusing on growing the economy, the government can create many employment opportunities for its citizens' and 'Consider Japan, where employees are often compelled to work long hours...'. Grammatical accuracy is reasonably high, with correct verb tenses, appropriate subordination, and accurate punctuation throughout the response. Errors are very rare, and the majority of sentences are error-free. The grammatical control is strong, but the score is affected by the severe task-response failure and under-length issue, though grammar itself is evaluated on what is produced.

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