Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

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

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 5.5)

It is true, in developed countries people leave the rural life and come to the city due to some reason. Population in the village is decreasing day-by-day. It is a negative development for a country in terms of economic and other social issues.

First of all, city cannot absorb a large number of families. Large number of families demand many social things which is necessary for a person. For instance, a medical hospital, upgraded school and university, a well furnished park and road is the need of hour in this situation. It is complicated for a developing economy such as Pakistan. Pakistan is an agriculture country. More than 70% people live in rural areas. If these people come to the city then they brought many problems for the government.

Similarly, the government should take action in various ways. Firstly, they develop the different small industries in the countryside. These industries will be helpful in terms of employment and people do not come to the city for the purpose of earning money. Secondly, new cities should be build for the purpose of reducing pressure on developed cities. This type of plan will be assist the economy of the country.

In conclusion, there are many plans to control the population in the urban city by providing the employment of the countryside people. This type of development will be helpful for country and citizen. Because reducing the size of population in the developed city means to reduce the climate change and other types of threat.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

Your position is clear: you regard rural-to-urban migration as negative, and you give relevant reasons, including pressure on city services and the loss of rural workers in an agricultural country such as Pakistan. You also suggest responses, such as creating rural industries. However, the discussion is only partly developed. The claim that cities cannot absorb families is supported by a list of facilities, but you do not explain how migration specifically creates these pressures or provide a concrete example. The final point about reducing climate change is introduced without showing the connection to population movement. Develop the main reasons with clearer cause-and-effect explanation and keep the conclusion focused on your stated position.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, two body paragraphs and a conclusion. Sequencing phrases such as “First of all,” “Similarly,” and “In conclusion” help signal the stages of your argument. However, progression within paragraphs is sometimes unclear. The second paragraph moves from pressure on services to Pakistan’s agricultural economy without fully linking these points, while the paragraph beginning “Similarly” shifts from the effects of migration to government solutions. Some connections are mechanical, and “This type of development” in the conclusion does not clearly identify which development you mean. Group related effects and solutions separately, and use explicit links to show how each example supports your position.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use some topic-relevant vocabulary, including “rural areas,” “employment,” “agriculture,” “developing economy,” and “climate change,” which allows you to communicate the main ideas. There are also attempts at more specific phrases, such as “social issues” and “reducing pressure.” However, the range is limited and several word choices or collocations sound unnatural, including “social things,” “a well furnished park,” and “the need of hour.” Repetition of “city,” “people,” and “development” also reduces precision. Aim for more exact terms for public services and migration effects, and check common collocations. More accurate phrasing would make your argument easier to follow without changing its basic meaning.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentences, including conditional forms such as “If these people come to the city then…” and a relative clause in “industries which will be helpful.” However, the range is limited, and errors occur frequently enough to make some sentences awkward or difficult to process. Examples include “city cannot absorb” (missing an article), “they brought many problems” (incorrect verb form), “new cities should be build” (incorrect passive form), and “This type of plan will be assist” (incorrect verb construction). There are also agreement and sentence-boundary problems, as in “Because reducing the size…” used as a separate sentence. Practise accurate articles, verb forms and complete sentence structures before adding more complex patterns.

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.