Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-09-23

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Today more and more tourists are visiting places where conditions are difficult, such as the Sahara desert or the Antarctic.

What are the benefits and disadvantages for tourists who visit such places?

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

 

Student answer (Band 5.0)

In recent times, more tourists are visiting places where conditions are difficult such as the sahara desert or the antarctic. While i believe that that the advantages outweighs the disadvantages, this essay would convey them.

One reason why people visit such a place is because of curiosity. People are curious about not just the weather but also curious about what it would like going. An example could be seen in the videos of travel content creators who showcase what it's like being there and also get to tell people who would like to consider such bold move in the future.

Another reason would be for educational purposes. We could see some CNN reporters going to these places and educating people of the dangers, especially those who try to use these deserts to cross to other countries looking for greener pastures. And while the benefit is the opportunity to go to a new country and know whatit's like over there, itb also has it's disadvantage.

One disadvantage is the extreme weather condition which could likely burn the skin of the tourist even if they have sunscreen as sunscreens produced are not made with ingredients that could stand such extreme conditions and could cause skin diseases like skincancer. Another disadvange is the fact that a volcanic eruption could occur while these tourists are there and end up cutting their life short.

In summary, while the advantage outweighs the advantages, Precautions could be put to ensure that there's tight security at the borders gthereby preventing anybody from just having access to these places.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

The response addresses the prompt by discussing both the benefits and disadvantages of visiting difficult conditions such as the Sahara desert or the Antarctic. The writer outlines reasons like curiosity and education, alongside disadvantages such as extreme weather conditions. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited and contains slight tangents, such as discussing CNN reporters educating people about migrants crossing borders, which strays slightly from the core focus on tourists. Furthermore, the conclusion introduces a confusing point about border security rather than summarising the main points clearly. Despite these minor lapses, all parts of the prompt are addressed, supporting a Band 5.5 classification under the descriptors.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

The essay is divided into paragraphs, each dedicated to a distinct point, showing a basic structural framework. However, the overall progression is occasionally disrupted by abrupt transitions and confusing connections between sentences. For instance, the transition from educational purposes to border crossing is abrupt, and cohesive devices are sometimes mechanical or inaccurate (e.g., 'And while the benefit... itb also has it's disadvantage'). Referencing is also occasionally unclear. Paragraphing is present, but internal cohesion requires better management. These features align closely with Band 5.0.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

The vocabulary used is adequate for the task, allowing the writer to communicate basic ideas about extreme environments, curiosity, and weather conditions. However, the range is limited and repetitive. There are several vocabulary and spelling errors, such as 'sahara' instead of 'Sahara', 'whatit's' instead of 'what it is', 'itb' instead of 'it', and 'disadvange' instead of 'disadvantage'. Additionally, collocations are occasionally awkward, such as 'stand such extreme conditions'. While communication is not severely impeded, these noticeable errors and limited lexical flexibility place this response firmly at Band 5.0.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating some variety (e.g., conditional structures like 'even if they have sunscreen as sunscreens produced...'). However, grammatical accuracy is weak, with frequent errors in punctuation, capitalization (e.g., 'sahara', 'iantarctic'), subject-verb agreement, and contraction usage (e.g., 'itb also has it's disadvantage'). There are also punctuation omissions and run-on sentences. These frequent errors can cause some difficulty for the reader and prevent the response from achieving a higher band, making Band 5.0 an accurate assessment.

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

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