Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-08-18
IELTS Writing Task 2 question
In the future nobody will buy printed newspapers or books because they will be able to read everything they want online without paying. To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement?
Student answer (Band 5.5)
In the future nobody will buy newspapers or books because they will be able to read everything they want online without paying. Newspapers are the source of information for the people. If any thing happen in a country, it will be printed in the newspaper next day. People read newspapers for different purposes. Some people read newspapers for job opportunities, some read for government announcements or some read for other purposes according to their needs. But innovation in the technology sector badly effected the newspapers and books, as source of information. People shifted their interests from printed newspapers to mobile phones or TV channels.
In the future, the printed newspapers might not be given such a value as they were given in the past. People today just open their mobile phones, navigate to social media or Google Chrome and find the relevant information they are looking for. For example, in the recent years, everyday my father used to buy a newspaper and read it. By the time he got a smartphone, he not even looked at the newspaper. He just navigate to Google Chrome, add the query for his relevant information and get it in no time. The other reason for which I agree that printed newspapers or books might not be read in the future is because people today are in a hurry. The just want information that come in front of them in seconds. People are so diverted that they have taken the electronic media as the primary source of information.
One big disadvantage of people not buying books or newspaper will be lack of intelligence. Our parents or grand parents have much more intelligence because they buy books, they read them. They concentrated and yet developed a good memory. In future, when people only restrict themselves to specific information and get it without any struggle they will not give importance to it and hence they might not develop a good intelligence.
In my opinion, getting details for a specific purpose online is beneficial but in the long race, we all need books and newspapers. A person who read more books or newspapers is far much better in intelligence and vocabulary than a person who read everything online.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The response addresses the prompt by discussing the shift toward online information and the potential decline of printed media. You clearly state your position, agreeing that printed media may decline while highlighting the negative impact on cognitive development. However, the development of ideas is somewhat uneven. The argument regarding 'lack of intelligence' is a strong point but lacks specific evidence or nuance, relying on generalizations about older generations. To reach a higher band, ensure that each paragraph provides a more balanced exploration of the prompt, perhaps by acknowledging the counter-argument more explicitly before refuting it, rather than just listing reasons.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, each with a clear focus. You use some cohesive devices, such as 'For example' and 'In my opinion,' to guide the reader. However, the flow between sentences is sometimes mechanical, and the use of linking words is repetitive. For instance, the transition between the second and third paragraphs could be smoother to better connect the decline of newspapers to the broader societal consequences. Additionally, some referencing is slightly unclear, such as the use of 'it' in 'they will not give importance to it,' which could be more precisely defined.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'innovation,' 'relevant information,' and 'primary source.' However, there are instances of imprecise word choice and collocation errors, such as 'badly effected' (should be 'badly affected'), 'in the long race' (should be 'in the long run'), and 'far much better' (should be 'far better'). To improve, focus on using more sophisticated collocations and avoiding repetitive phrasing. The vocabulary is sufficient to convey your meaning clearly, but it lacks the precision and flexibility required for higher bands.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The essay contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are frequent grammatical errors that affect the fluency of the text. Common issues include subject-verb agreement ('If any thing happen,' 'information that come'), article usage ('the newspaper' vs 'newspapers'), and tense consistency ('he not even looked at'). While these errors do not impede communication, they are persistent throughout the response. To improve, focus on proofreading for basic subject-verb agreement and ensuring consistent verb tenses when describing past habits versus future predictions.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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