Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-09-08
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)
People argue on whether advertising is convincing consumers to buy goods and services or has no effect on their decision as they become accustomed with it. I feel that advertisment is effective in enticing indivduals to comsume more even when clients do not need effectively what they buy.
It is believed by many that since residents are constantly exposed to social media which is full of images, short videos that advertise products of different corporations, this leads them to become familiarized with this content and as a result they are not influenced. Hence, people are freein regard to what things to buy.
Nevertheless, psycologists and neuroscientists said that the more individuals watch television and scroll on websites, the more they internilize and take for granted the information that they grasp. This situation make them take some decision that they think it is their decision however, in fact, their decision are negatively or positively impacted by their habits. For instance, teenagers who watch many football matches, they tend to mimick their idol players, by changing their hair to the style adopted by players or wearing the same clothes as players. This is not the case when someone do not follow football.
To conclude, although some individuals consider advertising not having any effect on the life and style of people in society because of the extensive existence in daily life, I would argue that even if it is apparently not affecting our life, but due to the fact of repeating something every day, with time we will like and use it.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.0 |
| 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 position. The ideas are relevant, particularly the psychological perspective on subconscious influence. However, the development is somewhat uneven; the argument regarding the 'familiarity' of advertising is a bit thin, and the example of teenagers and football, while relevant, could be more tightly linked to the broader concept of advertising rather than just social influence. The conclusion effectively summarizes the position, but the overall depth of the argument is limited by the brevity of the response. To reach a higher band, ensure that each body paragraph provides a more thorough exploration of the underlying reasons for the views presented.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0
The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, each with a clear focus. Cohesive devices are used, such as 'Nevertheless', 'For instance', and 'To conclude', which help guide the reader. However, some transitions feel slightly mechanical, and there are instances where the flow is interrupted by awkward phrasing, such as 'This situation make them take some decision'. Referencing is generally clear, but the connection between sentences within paragraphs could be smoother to improve the overall progression of ideas. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate the two viewpoints and the conclusion.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, with some attempts at more sophisticated language like 'enticing', 'internilize', and 'mimick'. However, there are several spelling errors ('indivduals', 'comsume', 'psycologists', 'internilize', 'mimick') and some awkward collocations, such as 'do not need effectively what they buy'. While the range is sufficient to convey the intended meaning, the errors in spelling and word choice occasionally distract the reader. To improve, focus on mastering the spelling of common academic terms and refining the use of collocations to sound more natural.
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 subject-verb agreement issues ('This situation make them', 'their decision are', 'someone do not follow') and awkward phrasing ('freein regard to what things to buy'). While these errors do not prevent the reader from understanding the main points, they are frequent enough to impact the overall fluency of the writing. Increasing the variety of complex structures while ensuring accuracy in basic agreement and tense would significantly improve the score.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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