Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-08-28
IELTS Writing Task 2 question
Some people say that now is the best time in history to be living.
What is your opinion about this?
What other time in history would be interesting to live in?
Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.
Student answer (Band 5.0)
History has always been an interesting space of life. Although most people always discuss that now is the perfect season of living in history. The essay will discuss what I think is the best time, and also throw a little light on the possible life to live in history.
Firstly, history is what happen in time past, although some event that occur are not pleasant while some of them are always not forgettable. Living now in history will not be pleasant to remember because some of the things that are happening is too scaring, or living as if you are dreaming to wake-up and forget it did not happen in the first instance. For example, sickness that are not heard before occur in our every day life. For instance, my little niece of 4 years old has a kidney failure when he was 3 and half years of age, such thing did not happen in past history.
Secondly, although some things that are happening in recent time is much interested to stay now in history. For example, kids in their early age can operate computer perfectly. For instance my classmate child of 3 years old can create game robot, edit pictures, and type 500 words under 20 seconds.
History can be live now or rather, some things that happen in past history can be introduced in this current time. For instance, some food will have before can no longer being seen in the market like some of our native fruits, for example jojo, haye, and keta. And in recent time now internet is good.
In conclusion, living in history now is good but I will like to add some things from the past to make it balance.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0
The response addresses both parts of the prompt, but the development of ideas is inconsistent and often lacks clarity. While you mention that the present is not ideal due to health issues and that technology is a benefit, the arguments are not fully extended. The second part of the prompt—discussing another time in history—is not addressed; you mention 'some things that happen in past history' but fail to identify or describe a specific historical period you would like to live in. The position is somewhat unclear, and the lack of focus on the second task requirement significantly limits the score.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The essay is organised into paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the structure. However, the progression of ideas is often disjointed. You use basic cohesive devices like 'Firstly' and 'Secondly', but the transitions between sentences are sometimes abrupt or illogical, such as the sudden shift to discussing native fruits in the fourth paragraph. Referencing is occasionally unclear, making it difficult to follow the logical flow of your argument. More sophisticated linking words and better paragraph unity are needed to improve the overall coherence.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.0
The vocabulary is limited and often repetitive. You rely on basic terms like 'good', 'things', and 'history' throughout the text. There are also issues with word choice and collocation, such as 'perfect season of living' instead of 'ideal era' and 'too scaring' instead of 'frightening'. While the meaning is generally conveyed, the lack of range and the frequent inaccuracies in word choice prevent a higher score. To improve, you should focus on learning topic-specific vocabulary and collocations related to history and technology.
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 occasionally impede communication. Examples include subject-verb agreement issues ('sickness that are not heard', 'some things that are happening is'), incorrect verb tenses ('history is what happen'), and awkward phrasing ('my little niece... has a kidney failure when he was 3'). Punctuation is also inconsistent. While the meaning is usually understandable, the high frequency of errors in basic grammar structures limits the score to the 5.0 band.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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