Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-09-01

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)

It is often argued that too little household waste is recycled and that governments should introduce laws to encourage people to recycle more . I agree with this statement. I believe that legal requirements can encourage residents to regard recycling as a responsibility . However, education recycling facilities to make this process easier.

Firstly, When governments enforce recycling laws, people are more likely to take their responsibilities seriously. Although people are aware of the environmental issues, they may not recycle regularly without any legal requirement. Residents become more responsible for separating their household waste. Additionally, they carefully separate plastic, glass and paper from general waste. For instance , in some developed countries, where the households expect to sperate the waste and maybe fined for decomposing of it incorrectly. As a result, recycling become a part of citizens daily routine.

On the other hand , if governments properly educate the public regarding the benefits and practical use of recycling. Public can learn how waste materials can be reuse in productive ways. However, schools can also play a significant role by educating young learners from an early age. In this way we can increase the recycling. For example: In Japan teachers introduce the environmental activities to the children, such as recycling projects and task to reuse of waste materials. As a results, it develop a sense of responsibility towards the recycling in a early age.

In Conclusion, legislation can encourage people to follow the recycling rule and increase the amount of waste that is recycled. Because it gives more facilities and public avoid the fines. Whereas, education can also improve people the understanding of waste recycling.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses the prompt by taking a clear position that legislation is necessary, while also acknowledging the role of education. However, the development of ideas is somewhat uneven. The second paragraph provides a relevant example regarding fines, but the third paragraph regarding education is less well-supported and lacks a clear link back to the prompt's core question about the necessity of laws. The introduction is slightly incomplete, as the final sentence is a fragment ('However, education recycling facilities to make this process easier'). Overall, the response covers all parts of the task, but the depth of argument could be improved to reach a higher band.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay is organised into logical paragraphs, each with a clear central topic. Cohesive devices are used, such as 'Firstly', 'Additionally', 'On the other hand', and 'In Conclusion', which help guide the reader. However, some transitions are mechanical or slightly misused, such as the abrupt shift in the introduction. Referencing is generally clear, though the flow between the argument for laws and the argument for education could be smoother. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate the different aspects of the argument.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The range of vocabulary is adequate for the task, allowing the student to express their ideas clearly. There are some attempts at topic-specific vocabulary, such as 'legal requirements', 'environmental issues', and 'productive ways'. However, there are several instances of awkward word choice or collocation errors, such as 'decomposing of it' (instead of 'disposing of it') and 'reuse of waste materials' (instead of 'reusing waste materials'). While these errors do not impede communication, they limit the score to the 6.0 range.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The student uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are several grammatical errors throughout the text, including subject-verb agreement issues ('recycling become a part', 'it develop a sense') and punctuation errors (the fragment in the introduction and the colon usage in the third paragraph). While the meaning is generally clear, the frequency of these errors prevents the essay from reaching a higher band. The student demonstrates an attempt at complex structures, but control over these is inconsistent.

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.