Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-10-03

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Some people like to try new things, for example, places to visit and types of food. Other people prefer to keep doing things they are familiar with.

Discuss both these attitudes and give your own opinion.

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

 

Student answer (Band 5.0)

Some people like to try new things, like places to visit or any types of food. However, some people prefer to keep doing things they are familiar with.

Many people want to try new things like visit different kind of places and types food because they want to feel more connected to other people. They want to learn something that they cannot learn on their own. How other people live and what culture do they have. These are the reasons why they want to try new things, they want to understand what the real world is. Furthermore, to some extent, other people prefer to keep doing things they are familiar with. Not because they dont care about other things, its just that they are already used to it. However, some are afraid to try new things because of some financial problems they have. For example, I would really love to try new things, visit some places and try to eat different kind of foods. The problem is that, I dont really have that much money and time to do all of these because I have so many responsibilities to do than to think my own interest.

Overall, I think everyone should try new things like travelling because it broaden your horizons. Moreover, even though you are afraid or you just want to do things you are familiar with, trying new things would have a massive impact in shaping of what and who you want to be in near future. So we should decide for the better version of ourselves.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.5

First, it must be noted that the response fails to meet the minimum length requirement, containing 238 words (with 21 words copied directly from the prompt discounted). Regarding task response, the essay addresses the task only partially. While it touches upon both attitudes toward trying new things versus keeping with the familiar, the position is not always clearly sustained throughout the response, and ideas remain limited and under-developed. For example, the explanation of why people like to try new things relies on repetitive notions like 'they want to feel more connected' and 'understand what the real world is' without sufficient extension or concrete support. Similarly, the personal example provided is brief and lacks depth, meaning the discussion of the opposing attitudes is handled in a somewhat superficial manner.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.0

Information and ideas are not arranged in a fully coherent way across the text. While paragraph breaks are attempted, the overall progression of ideas is disjointed and lacks a smooth logical flow. Cohesive devices are sometimes inadequate, inaccurate, or repetitive, making it difficult for the reader to follow the transitions between sentences and paragraphs. For instance, sentences like 'However, to some extent, other people prefer to keep doing things they are familiar with' are awkwardly linked to the preceding discussion. Furthermore, referencing is occasionally unclear, such as the sudden shift into a personal anecdote in the body paragraph without clear signposting to connect it back to the general discussion of the two attitudes.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The writer demonstrates a limited but minimally adequate range of vocabulary for the task. There are noticeable errors in word choice, collocation, and word form that occasionally cause some difficulty for the reader. Phrases such as 'different kind of places and types food', 'what culture do they have', and 'than to think my own interest' illustrate frequent lexical slips and non-standard collocations. Additionally, spelling and word formation issues are present, such as missing apostrophes in contractions ('dont') and imprecise terms. Although the writer attempts some less common vocabulary such as 'broaden your horizons' and 'massive impact', inaccuracies prevent the vocabulary from achieving a higher level of precision and control.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The response employs a very limited range of sentence structures, relying heavily on simple sentences and basic coordination. Attempts at complex sentences are frequently faulty, leading to frequent errors that can cause difficulty for the reader. There are issues with subject-verb agreement, such as 'what culture do they have' and 'responsibilities to do', as well as persistent punctuation errors and fragment sentences like 'Not because they dont care about other things, its just that they are already used to it.' Verb forms and tenses also show instability, for instance, 'it broaden your horizons' instead of the correct third-person singular form. These frequent grammatical errors restrict the text to a basic structural level.

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