Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-08-22

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

In some cultures, children are often told that they can achieve anything if they try hard enough. What are the advantages and disadvantages of giving children this message?

Student answer (Band 5.0)

In a few tradition, children are often motivated by saying that they can thrive their goals through hard work. This essay will state both advantages and disadvantages of passing this message to children.

Motivating children through different culture and tradition is very good idea to encourage them for their education and many other fields. Supporting children for their hobbies and interest also motivate them to extend their boundaries and do something more creative activities. Moreover, moral support provide them more fuel to learn new skills such as communication and problem solving which assist them to develop personality. In fact, they can use these skills to open doors to opportunities. Numerous studies have shown that children with moral help try hard to achieve their dreams and goal.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 4.0

The response fails to meet the minimum word count requirement of 250 words, reaching only 126 words. Consequently, the task is only partially addressed. While the essay introduces the topic and touches upon advantages, it completely omits the discussion of disadvantages, which is a core requirement of the prompt. The ideas presented are underdeveloped and lack the necessary depth and supporting evidence expected in an Academic Task 2 response. To improve, you must ensure all parts of the prompt are addressed with sufficient detail and meet the length requirement to allow for a full exploration of the arguments.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0

The essay shows some basic organization, with an introduction and a body paragraph. However, the progression of ideas is limited due to the brevity of the text. Cohesive devices are used, such as 'Moreover' and 'In fact', but the overall structure is underdeveloped. Paragraphing is insufficient, as the essay lacks a clear conclusion or a balanced structure to separate the advantages from the disadvantages. To improve, focus on creating a clear, logical flow between paragraphs and ensure each point is fully developed with supporting sentences before moving to the next.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

The vocabulary is generally adequate for basic communication but lacks the range and precision required for higher bands. Phrases like 'thrive their goals' are grammatically incorrect and show a lack of awareness regarding collocation. Other expressions, such as 'moral help' and 'very good idea', are somewhat simplistic. To achieve a higher score, you should aim to use more precise academic vocabulary and idiomatic expressions. Focus on learning collocations—words that naturally go together—to avoid awkward phrasing and to convey your ideas with greater sophistication.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The response contains a mix of simple and some attempted complex structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors. For example, 'In a few tradition' should be 'In some traditions', and 'thrive their goals' is an incorrect verb usage. Additionally, 'moral support provide them' lacks subject-verb agreement. While these errors do not entirely impede communication, they are frequent enough to affect the clarity of your writing. You should focus on mastering basic subject-verb agreement, pluralization, and the correct use of verbs in academic contexts to improve your accuracy.

See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.

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