Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-09-19

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)

Some people believe that not enough household waste is recycled. They think that the government should make recycling a leagl requirement. I partly agree with this opinion because laws can encourage people to recycle, but education and other methods are also important.

On the one hand, making recycling a law can increase the number of people who recycle their waste. if people know that they can get a fine for not separating their rubbish, they may take recycling more seriously, For example, the government can make it compulsory for households to separate plastic, paper, glass, and food waste. This can reduce the amount of waste going to landfills and help protect the environment.

On the other hand i do not think laws aew the only solution. some people may not recycle because they do not know to do it properly or there are not enough recycling bins in their area. Therefor, the government should provide more recycling facilities and teach people about the benefits of recycling. Schools can also teach children about waste management, so they can develop good habits from a young age.

In conclusion, i believe that laws can be useful for increasing recycling because they make people take the issues more seriously. However, government should also provide proper facilities and education. A combination of laws, facilities and public awarness would be more effective than laws alone.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses the prompt by discussing both the role of laws in compelling recycling and the necessity of alternative approaches such as education and infrastructure. The position is clear from the introduction and maintained throughout. However, the task achievement is constrained because the essay is under-length, containing only 229 words against the 250-word minimum requirement. This negative penalty directly impacts the extent of idea development. While the arguments presented are relevant, they remain somewhat concise and lack fully extended examples. For instance, the mention of households separating waste could have been developed with a more specific real-world illustration. Therefore, the response aligns best with Band 5.5 to 6.0 descriptors for task response, ultimately receiving a 5.5 due to the severe length penalty.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay displays a coherent overall arrangement with a clear paragraph structure. Each paragraph has a distinct focus, moving logically from the introduction to arguments in favour of laws, counter-arguments regarding facilities and education, and a concluding summary. Cohesive devices such as 'On the one hand', 'On the other hand', and 'In conclusion' are used appropriately to signal the progression of ideas. However, referencing and punctuation contain minor mechanical errors, such as missing capitalisation at the beginning of sentences ('if people know', 'some people may', 'i believe', 'government should'). Paragraphing is used sufficiently, and the logical flow is easy to follow despite the short overall length. This places the response firmly at Band 6.0.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary suitable for the task, including topic-specific terms such as 'household waste', 'landfills', 'waste management', and 'recycling facilities'. There are some attempts at less common vocabulary, but these are accompanied by spelling and word-choice inaccuracies. For example, 'leagl' is misspelled, 'awarness' is incorrect, and phrases like 'how to do it properly' miss a particle ('how *to* do *it*'). While these lexical errors do not impede overall communication, they restrict the lexical score. The variety of vocabulary is minimally sufficient to convey the student's message, corresponding to a Band 6.0 performance.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, utilizing conditional structures ('if people know that they can get a fine...') and subordinate clauses successfully. However, there are noticeable grammatical and punctuation inaccuracies throughout the text. Instances of errors include failure to capitalise the pronoun 'I' ('i partly agree', 'i do not think', 'i believe'), missing articles or prepositions ('do not know to do it properly' instead of 'how to do it'), and typographical errors like 'laws aew' instead of 'laws are'. Despite these frequent minor errors, the sentence structures remain comprehensible and communication is rarely impeded. This balance of mixed structures and persistent errors fits the Band 6.0 descriptors well.

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.