Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-08-10

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

In many countries around the world, rural people are moving to cities, so the population in the countryside is decreasing.

Do you think this is a positive or a negative development?

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

 

Student answer (Band 5.5)

The comparisons between the rural and urban areas are not new. This kept discussing in the socciety since the modern city states are being formed. There are some statistical evidences that rural migration to cities are causing population decrement in countryside.

This can be assumed both positive and negative based on the subjective personal opinion of the obesrvants. I believe, that there must be homogenity in the services, provided to both rural and urban areas beacuse most of the rural people move to cities due to lack of facilities. At least, the right to quality education and health services should be at the door of every citizen. Even if you cannot provide the larger loop of facilities to the villages and rural areas, there must be swift and fast transportation services to reach nearest best facilities.

There must be well established cities with extended opportunities and facilities near the rural area. This will help the people of rural areas to access modified level of living in the nearest possible location. It should be the duty of government to provide such level of services.

My own city Gujranwala is the best example to it. The city of Lahore is considered to having the world class facilities inside it. It is nothing bad for a provincial capital to have all but to establish a visually appealing and structurly well managed Lahore, the authorities have neglected theright of smaller cites to access to basci human right. My city doesn't have children hospital, no full scale public univeristy and no public sector cultural spots. This leads to migration to Lahore most often.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses the prompt by discussing the migration from rural to urban areas, but it lacks a clear, consistent position. While you mention it can be 'both positive and negative,' you do not fully explore the positive aspects, focusing almost exclusively on the negative consequences of urban-centric development. The ideas are relevant but remain somewhat under-developed; for instance, the link between migration and the lack of facilities in smaller cities is clear, but the argument could be strengthened by discussing the broader societal impacts of rural depopulation. To improve, ensure you explicitly state your position in the introduction and provide balanced, well-supported arguments for both sides of the issue.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organized into paragraphs, but the logical progression is sometimes hindered by awkward phrasing and a lack of cohesive devices. Transitions between sentences are often abrupt, such as the jump from the general discussion of facilities to the specific example of Gujranwala. While you use some linking words like 'even if' and 'this will help,' the overall flow feels mechanical. To reach a higher band, focus on using a wider variety of cohesive devices (e.g., 'consequently,' 'furthermore,' 'in contrast') to connect your ideas more fluidly and ensure that each paragraph has a clear, singular focus.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is adequate for the task but lacks precision and sophistication. There are several spelling errors ('socciety', 'obesrvants', 'homogenity', 'beacuse', 'structurly', 'basci') and some awkward collocations, such as 'statistical evidences' (evidence is uncountable) and 'larger loop of facilities.' While you attempt to use topic-specific vocabulary like 'migration' and 'provincial capital,' the range is limited. To improve, focus on learning the correct spelling of common academic terms and practice using collocations in context. Expanding your vocabulary to include more precise academic synonyms will help convey your ideas more effectively.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The essay contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors that occasionally impede readability. Examples include 'This kept discussing in the socciety' (passive voice error), 'migration... are causing' (subject-verb agreement), and 'The city of Lahore is considered to having' (incorrect verb pattern). Punctuation is also inconsistent, particularly with comma usage. While the meaning is generally clear, the high frequency of errors prevents the writing from reaching a higher band. Focus on mastering basic subject-verb agreement, verb patterns, and proofreading for common slips to improve your accuracy.

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

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.