Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-10-07

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)

While recycling can be beneficial for the ecosystem as it can assist in mitigating global warming levels, some individuals argue that governments are failing to encourage recycle their home wastes and must regulate recycling by enforcing strict legal methods. I largely agree that recycling has multiple benefits-such as less usage of plastic products and reduced emissions, but there are some drawbacks which can be overlooked.

Initially, people who believe that recycling should have strict laws imposed by governments can bring benefit of less usage of plastic products. Plastic production can be reduced to mitigate excessive emissions which can assist to low the global warming. Governments should allocate funds to plastic recycling industries to ensure that the plastic waste should be recycled nor be wasted. For example, plastic products can be replaced by paper products as they can easy to decompose naturally.

Furthermore, recycling helps industries not to make products from scratch which assists them to use less carbon emitting machineries. Food industries use large chemicals to produce food packets which generate excessive amounts of carbon and methane in air. Moreover, industries should get regulated under legal frameworks to prioritize recycling over scratch productions. For instance, in addition, plastic waste can also be useful to generate energy which can be used in different forms.

In conclusion, recycling have multiple benefits including less plastic productions and reduced carbon emissions. By implementing such regulatory systems for recycling, governments can ensure that the waste must be used in a beneficial way to generate resources.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

Your position is stated clearly in the introduction (“I largely agree”) and conclusion, and you give relevant reasons involving reduced plastic use, emissions and energy generation. However, the response does not fully address the central question of whether laws are needed: it mainly describes the benefits of recycling and regulation, without explaining why legal requirements are necessary or comparing them with alternatives such as education or incentives. Some support is also unclear or insufficiently developed—for example, the point about replacing plastic with paper does not show how a legal requirement would increase household recycling. Develop each reason with a direct link to the question and a specific, explained example.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure, with an introduction, two body paragraphs and a conclusion, and the ideas are generally grouped by topic. Basic signposting such as “Initially,” “Furthermore” and “In conclusion” helps readers follow the sequence. However, progression within paragraphs is sometimes unclear: the discussion moves from household recycling to industrial production and then to energy generation without explaining how these points connect to the question. The phrase “For instance, in addition” is also an awkward transition, and some references, such as “they” in the paper-products example, are not fully clear. Use topic sentences that state each paragraph’s main argument, then connect each example explicitly to your position on legal requirements.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of topic-related vocabulary, including “mitigating,” “emissions,” “legal frameworks” and “regulatory systems,” which allows you to discuss recycling and environmental effects. There are also attempts at more formal phrasing. However, some word choices and collocations are inaccurate or unnatural, such as “encourage recycle,” “low the global warming,” “scratch productions” and “carbon emitting machineries.” These choices sometimes make the intended meaning less precise, even though the overall topic remains understandable. Aim for natural combinations and accurate word forms, such as “encourage people to recycle,” “reduce global warming,” “production from scratch” and “carbon-emitting machinery.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and complex sentence forms, including clauses beginning with “as” and “which,” and most of the main ideas can be understood. However, errors in verb forms, agreement, articles and sentence construction recur. Examples include “governments are failing to encourage recycle,” “recycling have multiple benefits,” and “ensure that the plastic waste should be recycled nor be wasted.” The final example also contains a sentence-level problem: “For instance, in addition” combines two transitions awkwardly. These issues reduce accuracy and sometimes obscure relationships between ideas. Practise reliable patterns such as “encourage people to recycle,” “recycling has,” and “ensure that plastic waste is recycled rather than discarded,” then check each sentence for a clear subject and verb.

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