Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-10-03
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)
In many nations, individuals are now living longer lives than ever before. Some people say an aging population creates difficulties for governments. On the other hand, some people believe that there are benefits if society has more elderly people. I agree up to a point that society need more elderly people because they can assist young individuals in their studies and in the job.
Some individuals say an older people creates difficulties for government. Senior citizens most of the time get under the weather so government have to built infrastructure for them to keep them healthy and safe. For instance, government build new hospitals for aged peoples so they can take free medical check ups. Another reason is unemployment because senior citizens cannot perform heavy work task for long time furthermore, cannot focus for a while. As a result, government works on special schemes for aged citizens. For example, government provide free food and supplies for aged people in India so they don't need to work. Consequently government spend more money on senior citizens.
On the other hand, Some individuals believe that there are benefits if society has more aged people. Older adults can provide essential information to younger generation which can assist them to built their future and career. For example, senior citizen can give career advise to younger ones to built good career in future. Another reason is that older generation can take care of their grand children while their parents can do their work. For example, Some senior citizens love to take care of their grand children so it help their parents to do their professional works. As a result, senior citizens are beneficial for society.
In conclusion, I believe there are more advantages of senior citizens in society as compare to disadvantages because they can assist younger generation with their experience.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 6.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0
The response addresses all parts of the task and presents a clear position throughout, acknowledging both sides before stating a stance. Relevant ideas are presented regarding the challenges and benefits of an aging population, but some are under-developed or inadequately supported. For instance, the arguments concerning health infrastructure and unemployment are somewhat repetitive and rely on broad assertions rather than deep elaboration. Examples such as providing free food in India are mentioned, but they lack full contextual development to reach a higher level. The introduction correctly sets up the discussion, though 19 words copied directly from the task prompt were excluded from the official word count.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5
The essay displays a coherent overall arrangement with a clear attempt to structure the response into introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. However, cohesion is sometimes mechanical and repetitive, particularly with the over-use of transitions like 'For example' and 'Another reason is'. Paragraphing is used to separate distinct themes, but referencing is occasionally unclear, such as pronoun ambiguity in sentences like 'government works on special schemes for aged citizens.' Progression within paragraphs is sometimes hindered by abrupt shifts between ideas, preventing a smoother, more logical flow throughout the text.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.0
The writer demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully communicating central ideas. There are attempts to use less common items such as 'infrastructure', 'unemployment', and 'professional works', but these are accompanied by noticeable word-choice, collocation, and word-form errors, such as 'career advise' instead of 'career advice', 'grand children' instead of 'grandchildren', and 'get under the weather' in an inappropriate context. Spelling and word-choice errors occur, but they do not seriously impede overall communication, allowing the reader to follow the writer's arguments without excessive difficulty.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0
The writing uses a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, though attempts at complexity are often marred by basic structural errors. There are frequent errors in grammar, including subject-verb agreement issues like 'society need' instead of 'society needs', 'government have' instead of 'government has', and article omission such as 'in job' instead of 'in the job'. Punctuation errors and run-on structures also appear. While these issues occasionally cause difficulty or require the reader to pause, communication is rarely entirely blocked, fitting the descriptor for a mix of simple and complex forms with persistent errors.
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