Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-08-06
IELTS Writing Task 2 question
Some people say that advertising is extremely successful at persuading us to buy things. Other people think that advertising is so common that we no longer pay attention to it. Discuss both views and give your own opinion.
Student answer (Band 5.5)
It is argued by many that advertisement grabs people's attention to buy things while others believe that it's quite common that people ignore it. I agree with both the statement as it depends on the person.
Advertisement's main goal is to persuade people to buy products and it mainly focus on such things which children find interesting. A good example for this is chocolates, advanced toys etc. by watching such ads children put pressure on their guardian to buy those things. However, advertisement are made according to the need of the population so that they pay attention to it and purchase those products and those who find it beneficial they focus on advertisements.
On the other hand, many people don't get bothered by an advertisements, they feel that it's waste of time and usually skip such ads. For instance, advertisements in YouTube, most of the youngsters enjoy watching YouTube and when an advertisement pops-up they usually skip it because it interrupts the flow. Furthermore, it's also about their interest, population thinks that it's way too common nowadays that they have no genuine interest in watching such advertisements which leads to ignoring it.
Therefore, I believe that it completely depends on the person and their interest. If advertisements are made according to the need and want of the population, it successfully persuades them to purchase the products whereas those who find it common tend to ignore it.
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 both views and provides a clear personal opinion. However, the essay is under the 250-word minimum, which limits the depth of development. While the ideas are relevant, they are somewhat underdeveloped; for instance, the argument regarding children and toys is a good start but lacks a more nuanced explanation of how advertising strategies specifically target psychological triggers. The conclusion is brief and merely restates the introduction rather than synthesizing the arguments. To reach a higher band, you must expand your points with more detailed examples and ensure the essay meets the minimum length requirement to allow for full development of your ideas.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, with a clear introduction, two body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Cohesive devices are used, such as 'However', 'On the other hand', and 'Furthermore', which help guide the reader. However, some transitions feel slightly mechanical, and the flow between sentences could be smoother. For example, the transition in the second paragraph from the general goal of advertising to the specific example of children is a bit abrupt. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate the two viewpoints, which is a positive feature of your writing structure.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'persuade', 'beneficial', and 'interrupts'. However, there are some inaccuracies in word choice and collocation, such as 'advertisement grabs people's attention to buy things' (should be 'persuades people to buy') and 'advertisement are made' (subject-verb agreement error). The vocabulary is generally functional but lacks the precision and variety required for higher bands. To improve, try to incorporate more sophisticated collocations and avoid repeating the same words, such as 'advertisement' or 'population', throughout the text.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are several grammatical errors that occur throughout the text, such as 'I agree with both the statement' (should be 'both statements'), 'advertisement are made' (should be 'advertisements are made'), and 'advertisements in YouTube' (should be 'on YouTube'). While these errors do not significantly impede communication, they are frequent enough to affect the overall fluency. To improve, focus on subject-verb agreement, pluralization, and correct preposition usage. Increasing the variety of complex sentence structures while ensuring accuracy will help elevate your score.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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