Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-08-23

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Some people claim that not enough of the waste from homes is recycled. They say that the only way to increase recycling is for governments to make it a legal requirement.

To what extent do you think laws are needed to make people recycle more of their waste?

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

Student answer (Band 5.5)

In many countries, waste is still sent to landfill instead of recycling it. Though recycling helps to make our environment better and people are aware of this. So i personally agree that legislation should make this a essential requirement.

As just the volunteer for this isn't a good way to make recycling home waste, though most young people do recognize the importance of recycling and try their best to do it, but only a few people recycling the waste of home whenever they feel like and have free time is not the perfect solution. Moreover only educating people also is not the sole solution.

So the government should make the recycling a legal requirement by providing proper facilities first to make this task easier for every citizen. As an example; Europe has been strict over the garbage collection but they also provide the proper garbage collection system by separating the recycleable and non recycleable items because this reduces the chance of penalitising people who are busy and cannot make a time to serve this by recycling, instead they just need to put the garbage; already separated from home to the bins directly. Also the financial incentives will increase the behavior, and also make the children learn this habit more faster, as well as the adults.

In conclusion, Government should make this necessary requirement for every citizen but only after providing considerable facilities. I also totally agree because this will also reduce the likelihood of people being deviating from being called a bad citizen.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses the prompt by taking a clear position in favor of legislation, provided that infrastructure is in place. The ideas are relevant, particularly the link between government-provided facilities and the feasibility of mandatory recycling. However, the development is somewhat limited. The argument regarding 'financial incentives' is mentioned but not fully explored, and the conclusion introduces a slightly confusing point about 'deviating from being called a bad citizen' which lacks clarity. To reach a higher band, you should expand on your supporting examples and ensure that every point directly reinforces your central argument without introducing vague concepts at the end.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, and there is a clear progression of ideas from the introduction to the conclusion. You use some cohesive devices, such as 'Moreover', 'As an example', and 'In conclusion'. However, the use of these devices is sometimes mechanical or slightly awkward, such as the transition 'So i personally agree' or the repetitive use of 'also'. Additionally, some sentences are fragmented or run-on, which disrupts the flow of information. Improving the variety of your linking words and ensuring that each sentence connects smoothly to the next would improve the overall coherence.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, allowing you to express your ideas clearly. You use some topic-specific terms like 'landfill', 'legislation', and 'financial incentives'. However, there are instances of imprecise word choice and minor errors, such as 'make this a essential requirement' (should be 'an essential') and 'make the children learn this habit more faster' (should be 'faster'). The phrasing 'serve this by recycling' is also unnatural. To improve, focus on using more precise collocations and avoid repetitive phrasing to demonstrate a wider range of vocabulary.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The essay contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While you attempt complex sentences, there are frequent grammatical errors, including issues with articles ('the recycling'), subject-verb agreement, and sentence fragments (e.g., 'As just the volunteer for this isn't a good way...'). Punctuation is also inconsistent, particularly with the use of semicolons and commas. While these errors do not completely impede communication, they are frequent enough to prevent the essay from reaching a higher band. Focusing on sentence construction and proofreading for basic grammatical slips would be highly beneficial.

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

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