Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-08-11

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Plastic bags, plastic bottles and plastic packaging are bad for the environment.

What damage does plastic do to the environment?

What can be done by governments and individuals to solve this problem?

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

 

Student answer (Band 5.5)

In the contemporary era, plastic waste are escalating day by day because of that it wreaks adverse impact in the environment. This eassy intends to analyze some causes behind this situation and also suggest possible ways to alleviate this problems.

One of the major causes of this argument is that it curtail the efficiency of atmosphere and nature. These day, plastic waste is increasing in oceans because of that multiple marine mammals are dimishing even though the quality of water is reduced. In addition, many of the plastic materials are not recyclable due of the fact that it harming animals and nature. For example, In the plethora of rural areas, Individuals are throwing plastics on the streets. Therefore, animals like stray dogs, cats, and cows are cosuming those plastic matarials with their food, so that they are facing myriads of health issues.

Perhaps this problems it can be tackled by goverment. The authorities should impose some rules and regulations on manufacture company who are utilizing the bulk amount of plastic for their goods even though If they are neglecting the government policy, regime should charged some heavy panlty. For instance, the growing number of producers are altering some eco-friendly elements for their manufacturing process because of the national policey. Thus, it is extremely beneficial for atmosphere and different animanls species.

To sum up, many plastic products are destroying the nature and it efficiency due to that it is rising multiple problems for sea animals and stray cattles but this issues can be solved by imposing some panlty on producers.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses both parts of the prompt: the environmental damage caused by plastic and potential solutions from governments and individuals. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited. While you mention marine life and health issues, the explanation remains superficial. The solutions section is also quite brief, focusing primarily on government penalties without exploring individual actions in depth. To achieve a higher band, ensure that each point is supported by more detailed reasoning or specific, well-explained examples. The current ideas are relevant but lack the depth required for a higher score.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organized into paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the structure. However, the use of cohesive devices is often mechanical or inaccurate. For example, phrases like 'because of that' are used repeatedly and incorrectly to link ideas. There are also issues with referencing; in the second paragraph, 'this argument' is used to refer to a situation, which is not a logical choice. While there is a clear progression from the problem to the solution, the lack of varied and accurate linking words makes the flow feel somewhat disjointed.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task but lacks precision and variety. There are several spelling errors, such as 'eassy', 'matarials', 'panlty', and 'policey', which occasionally distract the reader. You rely on basic vocabulary and struggle with collocations, such as 'curtail the efficiency of atmosphere'. While you attempt to use some topic-specific vocabulary like 'eco-friendly' and 'manufacture', the overall range is limited. To improve, focus on learning word families and common collocations related to environmental issues to express your ideas with more accuracy.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The essay contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors that affect clarity. Subject-verb agreement is a recurring issue, such as 'plastic waste are escalating' and 'this problems it can be tackled'. There are also errors in word order and preposition usage, such as 'due of the fact that it harming'. While the meaning is generally understandable, the high frequency of errors in basic grammar prevents the essay from reaching a higher band. Focusing on proofreading for subject-verb agreement and article usage would be beneficial.

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.