Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-08-21
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)
From past few decades, urbanization is very rapid due to demand as it provides morden facilities and opportunity to grow. Due to this reason people from village are migrating to urban cities and number of people living in the countryside is falling. I think this is negative development. The narrative ahead shall articulate both the side of this development before reaching on a rational conclusion.
The first and foremost reason why i believe this as a negative development is that as people moving to cities the demand for urbanisation increases and as a result cities has to expand more and deforestation pollution can be effect of this. More and more agricultural land can be used for making facility for city and this can cause the food shortage for the growing population. It is fact that major developed countries with less agricultural land became more dependent on importing it. Another concern is that cities will became more crowded to live and pollution decreases their quality of life. Furthermore, in rural area with few population there can be less development and break in their society and culture.
On the other hand, morden cities provide facilities and opportunities to a person living in country compared to a person living in a rural area. For example, necessary facilities like high schools, large hospitals and many more that is lack of it in rural area. Furthermore, cities provide opportunity to work in big companies for educated individuals. In Well facilated cities a person can broader their field of work and explore new things to do. Cities also equipped with infrastructure, transportation and public amenities as well as entertainment facilities.
To conclude, Although, Migration to cities provides amenities and facility that uplift our living and also provide better earning opportunities, it can cause many environmental concerns, food shortages and some societal effect in rural area.
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 the prompt by discussing the migration from rural to urban areas and taking a clear position. However, the development of ideas is somewhat uneven. While you mention environmental concerns and food shortages, these points are not fully explored with specific examples or logical depth. The introduction states you will discuss 'both the side' of the development, but the essay structure is slightly contradictory as you clearly state it is a 'negative development' in the introduction, yet spend a significant portion of the second body paragraph listing the benefits of urbanization. To improve, ensure your supporting arguments directly reinforce your stated position throughout the essay.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0
The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, and there is a clear progression of ideas. You use some cohesive devices such as 'Furthermore', 'On the other hand', and 'To conclude' to link your thoughts. However, the use of these devices is sometimes mechanical, and the transition between the negative impacts and the benefits of urbanization could be smoother. Additionally, some referencing is slightly unclear, such as 'that is lack of it in rural area', which makes the connection between sentences a bit disjointed. Improving the variety and natural flow of your linking words will help elevate your score.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'urbanization', 'deforestation', and 'amenities'. However, there are several instances of awkward word choice and collocation errors, such as 'morden facilities' (modern), 'making facility for city' (infrastructure), and 'in Well facilated cities' (well-facilitated). These errors occasionally hinder the precision of your argument. To reach a higher band, focus on using more precise academic collocations and ensure you are using the correct word forms in context, rather than relying on repetitive or slightly misused terminology.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The essay contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While you attempt to use complex sentences, there are frequent grammatical errors, particularly with subject-verb agreement ('cities has to expand', 'cities will became', 'pollution decreases their quality') and article usage ('in rural area with few population'). Punctuation is generally functional, but there are errors in sentence construction that require the reader to re-read for clarity. To improve, focus on mastering basic subject-verb agreement and ensuring that your complex sentences are constructed accurately without missing prepositions or articles.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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