Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-09-18
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 5.0)
It is often seen in many countries that rural people move to metropolitan areas leaving their own home due to which countryside areas become less populated. In my opinion. while there are valid arguments on both sides, I firmly believe that moving from an underdeveloped area to cities is not an effective approach for country's development. This essay will discuss both perspectives and explain how the tranfer from urban to rural areas yields negative effects in country's progress.
On the one hand, I would give a major argument in favor of moving from unprogressive areas to places with modern technology. Many individuals who focus on this aspect, they tend to experience self-growth and progress in their lifestyle. It is primarily because if they move to advanced cities, they will get good education and job facilities there. Consequently, this demonstrates a significant portion of public support this perspective
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 4.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 4.5
The response is severely under-length, containing only 147 words against the required minimum of 250 words. This substantial shortfall means the task cannot be fully addressed. Although the student attempts to introduce a position and mentions arguments regarding urban migration, the ideas are cut off mid-sentence and remain undeveloped, leading to a Band 4.5 rating under Task Achievement constraints for severe under-length.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The text exhibits some basic organizational structure with an introductory paragraph and a transition into body paragraphs, such as 'On the one hand'. However, referencing and progression are disrupted by the abrupt ending of the text at 147 words. The misuse of paragraphing, such as an incomplete sentence standing alone ('In my opinion. while...'), lowers the coherence score, though logical sequencing is attempted. This corresponds to Band 5.5.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.0
The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary for basic communication, using terms like 'metropolitan areas', 'underdeveloped area', and 'self-growth'. However, there are notable collocation and phrasing errors, such as 'tranfer from urban to rural areas' (which contradicts the premise of the prompt) and 'country's development'. The vocabulary range is limited and minimally adequate, fitting the Band 5.0 descriptor.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, such as 'Many individuals who focus on this aspect, they tend to experience...'. There is a grammatical error with a redundant pronoun ('they') immediately following a relative clause, and a punctuation error in 'opinion. while'. While some structures are accurate, frequent minor errors and the incomplete nature of the response place it at Band 5.0.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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