Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-08-26

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)

Everyone wants to live in an peaceful environment with the availability of basic needs. In contrast, there are some people who continuously like to move from one place to another. In this essay I will talk about the advantages and disadvantages of spending life at one place. Sometimes it is a compulsion to move and sometimes it is a hobby that keeps you moving.

A considerable number of people spend most of their lives where they born. They do not want to take risk. Moreover, they want to stay connected to their roots. Since they think living close to their birthplace gives them peace of mind. People in the neighborhood know them for long period of time. In addition, whenever they are in trouble people are there to help them. They know every inch of their locality and the availability of basic things.

Like everything has pros and cons. In contrast, there are other group of people who continuously move from one city to the other. Sometimes this is because of their jobs need, or their education demands to move to other city. However, there are some people who enjoy moving because they want to experience different cultures, foods and weather. However moving from one place to another sometimes may be dangerous for them and their family. They do not know about the locality and the people. In addition, it is difficult to make a faithful friend away from your family.

In my opinion, one should spends his life in comfortable environment rather than moving after every couple of years and start from the scratch. People have emotional attachment with the place where they born. Furthermore, they feel at home when spend their lives with their loved ones.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The essay addresses all parts of the prompt: reasons for staying in one's birthplace, and the advantages and disadvantages of this lifestyle. However, the development of these ideas is somewhat limited. For instance, the reasons for staying are mentioned briefly (fear of risk, emotional roots), and the advantages/disadvantages are presented in a list-like fashion without deep exploration. The introduction is slightly confusing as it mentions people who like to move, which is not the primary focus of the prompt. To reach a higher band, you should expand on your points with more specific examples or logical explanations rather than just stating them.

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 sometimes mechanical or repetitive. For example, the transition 'In contrast' is used in the first paragraph to introduce a point that doesn't clearly contrast with the previous sentence. Additionally, the phrase 'However' is used twice in the third paragraph, which feels redundant. The logical flow between sentences is generally clear, but the connections could be smoother and more varied to improve the overall cohesion of the argument.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is adequate for the task but lacks the range and precision required for higher bands. You rely on basic phrases such as 'basic needs', 'peace of mind', and 'pros and cons'. There are some minor errors in word choice and collocation, such as 'jobs need' instead of 'job requirements' and 'start from the scratch' (the correct idiom is 'start from scratch'). To improve, try to incorporate more topic-specific vocabulary related to migration, community, and social stability, and ensure that idiomatic expressions are used accurately.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors that occasionally distract the reader. Examples include 'where they born' (should be 'where they were born'), 'whenever they are in trouble people are there' (missing comma), and 'one should spends' (should be 'one should spend'). While these errors do not prevent the reader from understanding your meaning, they indicate a lack of control over basic subject-verb agreement and verb tense consistency. Increasing the variety of complex structures while focusing on accuracy will help improve this score.

See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.

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