Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-11-04

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)

Nowadays, our earth is facing lot of environmental challenges and one of them is home waste. Some people argues, that the amount of house waste recycling is still not enough and governments should introduce legal ways to increase the amount of recycling. However, I totally agree with this statement and i will explain my prespective in this essay.

Firstly, that's true we are still lacking in the amount of recycling. This is because, we are still not aware of recycling process. For example, in south asian countries there has a common practice of plastic wastage burning instead of putting into recycle bin. To understand in depth, the reason behind this is a lack of resources they don't have bins which are used for collection of different type of recycling materials.

Secondly, the other reason is government bodies, they don't show any serious interest in this huge problem . Because , they have some other bussiness to do. For instance, if they should introduce laws which will be helpful for them to solve this problem. Meanwhile they should also encourage citizens to do recycling by giving them rewards. They are many common examples like Finland and Sweden which will help to understand the system of recycling and how they motivate their citizens to do it.

In conclusion, our planet needs ecofriendly environment and i strongly agree on this point that governments should make laws which restrict citizens to obey the recycling process. In end, all these activites eventually help us and make laws more clear for our upcoming generations , as a result they will feel more pleasent environment without extra waste.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

Your position is clear: you strongly support government laws to increase household recycling, and you give relevant reasons involving limited public awareness, inadequate facilities and government action. The examples of plastic burning and recycling systems in Finland and Sweden help connect the discussion to real situations. However, the response only partly develops the question of how necessary laws are. The first body paragraph focuses mainly on lack of awareness and bins, while the second introduces rewards and government priorities without explaining how legal requirements would address these issues. Clarify whether laws are essential or should be combined with education and infrastructure, then explain and support that view more fully.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The essay has a recognisable overall structure, with an introduction, two body paragraphs signposted by “Firstly” and “Secondly,” and a conclusion. The main ideas are generally grouped into relevant paragraphs, so the reader can follow the broad direction of the argument. However, some connections are unclear or mechanical. For example, “To understand in depth” does not clearly link the lack of awareness to the shortage of bins, and “Meanwhile” introduces encouragement and rewards without showing how this relates to the preceding point about laws. The sentence beginning “Because” is also left as a fragment, disrupting the flow. Use clearer cause-and-effect links and make each paragraph develop one connected line of reasoning.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant topic vocabulary, including “recycling process,” “collection,” “resources,” “citizens” and “legal.” These choices make the subject clear, and terms such as “rewards” show an attempt to discuss practical policy measures. However, the range is limited and several word choices or collocations are inaccurate, which sometimes makes the meaning less precise. For instance, “house waste recycling” and “plastic wastage burning” are awkward, while “business to do” does not clearly express the intended idea about government priorities. Spelling errors such as “prespective,” “bussiness” and “activites” also reduce accuracy. Build a more precise set of phrases for household waste, enforcement and public participation, and check spelling carefully.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentences, including a relative clause in “laws which will be helpful” and a result clause beginning “as a result.” However, the range is limited, and errors occur frequently enough to make some sentences difficult to follow. Examples include “Some people argues,” “in south asian countries there has a common practice,” and “They are many common examples,” where agreement or sentence structure is faulty. The sentence “Because, they have some other…” is incomplete, and punctuation around commas and full stops is inconsistent. Practise forming complete sentences with accurate subject–verb agreement, articles and clause links, then proofread each sentence for a clear main clause.

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