Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-08-09

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

In many countries, people are now living longer than ever before. Some people say an aging population creates problems for governments. Other people think there are benefits if society has more elderly people.

To what extent do the advantages of having an aging population outweigh the disadvantages?

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

Student answer (Band 5.5)

Aging population is important for a country as more longer people live there shows that the country has a good quality of life and good healthcare faculties must be available there. However, whether it is beneficial or not for country depends on the facts.

There are a lot of advantages of having aging population in the country. Firstly, they are more experienced in the work which may take time for a young worker to learn. For example, a old worker may have a good past history of work which would bring more innovations in the work.

Secondly, the elder people can motivate young generations with there previous history and by telling them story about there struggling life. Moreover, they can also guide them on the hardships they may have faced during there life which may reduce less chances of new worker being failed.

On the other side, there are also some disadvantages of having elder people. For instance, they may be old enough to not work and may be dependent on pension by government which may eventually reduce government spendings on other areas such as healthcare and infrastructure.

Furthermore, elder people cannot do work that requires more strength. For example, they may not be able to do labour related work such as lifting heavy items from one place to another.

In my opinion, there are more advantages than disadvantages as more aging population increases the population of the country which leads to more workers available in the economy. This increases GDP per head

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses the prompt by discussing both the advantages and disadvantages of an aging population. However, the development of ideas is quite limited. For instance, the argument that elderly people increase the population and thus the GDP is logically flawed and lacks sufficient explanation. The position is clear, but the supporting points are underdeveloped and rely on generalizations. To reach a higher band, you should provide more specific examples and ensure your economic reasoning is sound. The conclusion is abrupt and does not fully synthesize the arguments presented in the body paragraphs.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organized into paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the structure. You use basic cohesive devices such as 'Firstly', 'Secondly', and 'On the other side'. However, the flow between sentences is sometimes mechanical, and the logical progression within paragraphs is weak. For example, the transition from discussing the experience of older workers to the motivation of younger generations is somewhat abrupt. Additionally, the referencing is occasionally unclear, and the overall structure lacks the sophisticated linking required for higher bands.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task but lacks variety and precision. You rely on simple phrasing such as 'good quality of life' and 'hardships'. There are also some noticeable errors in word choice, such as 'more longer people' instead of 'people living longer' and 'reduce less chances' which is redundant. To improve, you should aim to use more academic collocations and precise terminology related to demographics and economics. The range of vocabulary is sufficient to convey meaning, but it does not demonstrate the flexibility expected at higher levels.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

There is a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but the accuracy is inconsistent. You frequently make errors with articles, prepositions, and word forms, such as 'a old worker' (should be 'an old worker') and 'there previous history' (should be 'their previous history'). Subject-verb agreement and pluralization are also problematic in several places. While the meaning is generally clear, these persistent errors in basic grammar and punctuation limit the score. You should focus on proofreading for common errors like 'there/their' and ensuring consistent verb tense usage.

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

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