Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-09-14
IELTS Writing Task 2 question
Some people say that it is possible to tell a lot about a person’s culture and character from their choice of clothes.
Do you agree or disagree?
Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.
Student answer (Band 5.5)
Some people believe that your clothes represent your culture and character. I partially agree to this view and this essay will explain my reasons.
On the one hand, India is a democretic country. People in India follow different cultures and believes. Eevery culture has its own way of dressing style. So, by looking someone's clothes we can tell alot about his culture and character. For example, if we see a lady wearing a gujarati draped saree and a man wearing a dhoti and kurta then we can say that they are from Gujarat and they represent gujarati culture and they are business minded.
On the other Hand, people are developing in their style of clothes according to the cities in which they are live in. For example, gujarati people donot wear saree and kurta all the times. They do wear salwar and shirts. So, we cannot predict their culture and character from their clothes. Furthermore, even if they live in their own city, they are evolving. Their choice of clothes depends upon the occasion. People are wearing formals during their office time. They are wearing western clothes during parties or events. So, everytime they donot wear their cultural dresses and we cannot make any assumptions about their culture and behaviour.
In addition to this, type of clothes cannot decide your character like branded clothes doesnot represent your good or bad behaviour. It can show your class only.
In my opinion, choice of clothes tell us alot about person's culture and character but not all the time. It is depends on occasions. I think your personality and behaviour represent your character rather than clothes.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The response addresses all parts of the prompt by discussing both sides of whether clothing reflects culture and character, presenting a clear partial agreement. Ideas are supported with relevant examples, such as traditional Indian attire like the Gujarati draped saree and dhoti. However, some arguments tend to be slightly repetitive or under-developed, particularly when discussing modern clothing trends and how they relate to character. Overall, the task is successfully fulfilled, placing this performance at Band 6.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The essay has a coherent overall arrangement with a clear introduction and conclusion. Paragraphing is used to separate different viewpoints, starting with 'On the one hand' and 'On the Other Hand'. However, cohesive devices are sometimes mechanical or faulty, and referencing is not always clear, such as 'It is depends on occasions' in the conclusion. Progression is visible, but the flow between sentences could be smoother to reach a higher band level.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, attempting some less common items such as 'business minded', 'occasions', and 'assumptions'. However, there are noticeable spelling and word choice errors, including 'democretic' instead of democratic, 'believes' instead of beliefs, and 'Eevery' instead of Every. These errors do not impede communication, but they reflect a Band 6 level of lexical control.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The response features a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, such as 'For example, if we see a lady wearing a gujarati draped saree...'. There are several grammatical errors and awkward phrasings throughout, such as 'they are live in', 'donot wear saree and kurta all the times', 'type of clothes cannot decide your character like branded clothes doesnot represent', and 'It is depends'. These errors occasionally distract the reader, but meaning is generally preserved, consistent with Band 5.5 or 6.0.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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