Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

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

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)

An increasing number of people argue that only insignificant amount of domestic waste is recycled. It is essential for governments to establish an efficient law and order system in order to expand the waste recycling procedure. Although public awareness and education is of great importance, I believe that laws are necessary to a great extent to encourage people to recycle their waste.

First of all, governments should introduce strict legislation and policies regarding waste management. Without legal measures, people often neglect their responsibilities towards a sustainable environment. Fines should be imposed someone who violates the law, this could discourage people from throwing the waste and it these laws can make ercycling compulsory for every citizen. Germany provides the best example for effective wate-management policies. There are separate trash bins for each type of waste which is effective for proper recycling of waste. Hence, it is inevitable to establish laws to address the widespread concern of waste.

Furthermore, public awareness companigs and environmental education iare also necessary for material recovery. Government should arrange such compaigns and spread awasrenesss about the importance of recycling waste materials to increase a sense of responsibility among citizens as a human being on the earth. Government and local authorities must provide clearly labelled recycling bins and teach people how to effectively use them.

In conclusion, legislation and enforcement are essential for proper waste recycling. Strict environmrnt protection laws can make people to show their responsibity towards recyclig their

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

Your position is clear: you believe laws are needed to a great extent, while also recognising the value of education. You give relevant support through fines, compulsory recycling, and the example of Germany’s separate bins. However, the discussion is only partly developed: the Germany example is asserted rather than explained, and the education paragraph does not show how awareness works alongside legal enforcement. The conclusion also ends abruptly, leaving the final idea incomplete. The response is 8 words below the required minimum, so it does not fully meet the task’s length requirement. Develop each reason with a specific explanation or example, and complete the conclusion to make your answer more fully supported.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, two body paragraphs beginning with “First of all” and “Furthermore,” and a conclusion. This makes the main line of argument easy to identify. However, progression within sentences is sometimes unclear, particularly in “Fines should be imposed someone who violates the law, this could discourage people…” where ideas are joined without a clear grammatical link. The first body paragraph also moves quickly from fines to compulsory recycling and then Germany, without fully explaining the connections. The conclusion is incomplete, which weakens the overall sense of closure. Use clearer sentence boundaries and develop each paragraph around one reason, linking examples explicitly to that reason.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You attempt a range of topic-specific vocabulary, including “legislation,” “waste management,” “sustainable environment,” “material recovery,” and “public awareness.” These choices show an effort to discuss the issue beyond basic terms. However, spelling errors and inaccurate word combinations are noticeable and sometimes make the reader pause, as in “ercycling,” “wate-management,” and “awareness companigs.” Some phrases are also unnatural, such as “establish an efficient law and order system” and “as a human being on the earth.” Aim for accurate, natural collocations rather than adding formal-sounding wording. Proofread carefully, and use precise expressions such as “introduce effective recycling regulations” or “raise public awareness of recycling.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You use both simple and more complex sentence forms, including the concession in “Although public awareness and education is of great importance…” and the conditional opening “Without legal measures…”. However, attempts at longer structures are often faulty, and errors occur frequently enough to affect clarity. For example, “Fines should be imposed someone who violates the law, this could discourage…” lacks the necessary structure and punctuation between clauses. “Government should arrange” also needs an article or plural subject, while “can make people to show” uses an incorrect verb pattern. The final sentence is incomplete. Practise accurate clause linking, subject–verb agreement, articles, and verb patterns such as “make people show,” then check each sentence for a complete main clause.

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