Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-08-23
IELTS Writing Task 2 question
Some people spend most of their lives living close to where they were born.
What might be the reasons for this?
What are the advantages and disadvantages?
Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.
Student answer (Band 5.5)
In some countries, many people spend most of their lives living near their birth home. This is because it is less stressful to adapt in a new environment, tradition and lifestyle.
One of the advantages of living close to where they were born is comfort. Most of the individuals feel more comfortable staying close to home because of the familiarity with the location, culture and the food. They lack the interest to experience new things which limit them to a certain knowledge. Another important merit is previous emotions. Some people still bear previous memories of where they lived because of fun time shared with family and friends, which makes is hard to stay away from such arena. For example, in Uk, most adults are living in their late parents' house because of the memories shared with parents.
However, there are disadvantages to this. Firstly, it limit the experience of some people. Moving to a different location helps one to gain more in-sight of another location outside home, where you encounter new lifestyle, foods and culture. Secondly, it minimizes the level of independence and confidence in some individuals. This is due to lack of confidence in oneself , scared of adapting or relating to the public. They solely depend on family and friends. For instance, in some of Nigeria, there people who have in one particular location all their lives, limiting themselves of experiencing other part of the country.
In conclusion, staying close or living to your birth home has both merits and demerit. However, the reasons of living close to where they were born is because of it is less stressful and comfortable.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The response addresses all parts of the prompt: reasons, advantages, and disadvantages. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited. For example, the point about 'previous emotions' is a bit vague, and the explanation of why people stay in their birth home could be more deeply explored beyond just 'comfort'. While the position is clear, some arguments, such as the claim that staying home limits knowledge, are stated rather than fully extended. To reach a higher band, ensure that each point is supported by more detailed reasoning or specific, well-integrated examples.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The essay is organized into clear paragraphs, and there is a logical progression of ideas. Cohesive devices are used, such as 'One of the advantages', 'However', and 'Firstly', which help guide the reader. However, some transitions feel a bit mechanical, and there are instances where referencing is slightly unclear, such as the phrase 'previous emotions' which does not quite capture the intended meaning of 'nostalgia' or 'sentimental attachment'. Paragraphing is appropriate, but the concluding paragraph is quite brief and does not fully synthesize the main points discussed in the body paragraphs.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, allowing the writer to express their ideas clearly. There are some attempts at less common vocabulary, such as 'in-sight' and 'arena', though these are not always used with perfect precision or natural collocation. Some word choices are repetitive, such as the frequent use of 'living' and 'home'. To improve, focus on using more precise collocations and a wider variety of synonyms to avoid repetition and enhance the sophistication of your writing.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are several grammatical errors, such as 'it limit the experience' (subject-verb agreement), 'scared of adapting' (parallelism), and 'there people who have in one particular location' (missing verb). Punctuation is generally functional, but there are minor errors, such as the spacing before commas. While these errors do not impede communication, they occur frequently enough to prevent the essay from reaching a higher band. Focusing on subject-verb agreement and consistent verb tense usage would be beneficial.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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