Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-10-10

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)

Nowadays, in many countries around the world, people are living longer lives as compared to the past. Some people believe that an aging population creates some problems for government, while others believe that having elderly people in society have several benefits. I believe that disadvantages of aging population outweigh the advantages.

On the one hand, aging population creates numerous problems for government. Government have to arrange old age house, generally when people get elder then they prefer to go to old age house instead of living at home. In addition, in some countries government provides signficant amount of money to elder people, so it is challenging when the population of elder people increased. On the other hand, increasing number of elder people lead to shortage of skilled workers, labour and professionals. For example, when in any country the population of elder people is higher than young people then the country may face difficulties in order to find suitable candiate for job.

On the other hand, there are several benefits of having elder people in society. Firstly, the elder people have the great experience to handle difficult situation. They have the wide range of the knowledge about issues and the solutions that happen in society. Elder people are good decision makers and they play a crucial role in solving conflict in society. Sometimes elder pepole are leading the youth because they have the power and experience.

In conclusion, although agng population have several benefits such as good experience of handling difficult circumstances, it has several disadvantages such as difficult to arrange old age house, difficult to provide financial support. It also lead to shortage of professionals, skilled workers and labour. I believe that disadvantages of the aging people outweigh the advantages.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

Your position is clear from the introduction and conclusion: you believe the disadvantages outweigh the advantages. You address both sides and give relevant points, including government support and care for older people, possible worker shortages, and the experience older people can contribute. However, some ideas are asserted rather than explained. For example, the claim that older people “prefer to go to old age house” needs qualification or support, and the worker-shortage example could explain how this affects the economy or public services. The benefits paragraph also focuses mainly on experience and conflict resolution, with little development of how these benefits compare with the costs. Develop each main point with a specific explanation or example to make the comparison more convincing.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, discussion of disadvantages, a paragraph on benefits, and a conclusion. The main ideas are generally easy to follow, and signposting such as “On the one hand,” “In addition,” and “In conclusion” helps readers navigate the argument. However, “On the other hand” is used to introduce both the worker-shortage point and the benefits paragraph, which makes the relationship between ideas less clear. The disadvantages paragraph also combines government costs with labour shortages without a clear transition between these distinct points. Use more precise paragraphing and linking, and make references such as “it” in the conclusion clearly identify the issue being discussed.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use enough topic-related vocabulary to communicate the main argument, including “aging population,” “financial support,” “skilled workers,” and “decision makers.” There are also attempts at more specific expressions, such as “play a crucial role” and “suitable candidate.” However, the range is limited by repeated use of “elder people” and “difficult,” and several word choices or collocations are inaccurate, including “old age house,” “the population of elder people,” and “leading the youth.” Spelling errors such as “signficant,” “candiate,” “pepole,” and “agng” also reduce accuracy. Build a more varied set of natural phrases for describing older people, public costs, and workforce effects, and check spelling carefully.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and more complex sentence forms, including a contrast clause with “although” and a conditional example beginning “when … then.” Most of the argument remains understandable, but some errors in agreement, articles, plurals, and sentence construction are noticeable. For example, “having elderly people in society have several benefits” has a subject–verb agreement problem, while “Government have to arrange” and “increasing number … lead” also need agreement correction. Articles and number are inconsistent in phrases such as “the great experience” and “a suitable candiate.” Practise checking each sentence’s subject and verb, and use articles and plural forms consistently. More accurate complex sentences would strengthen the range you are already attempting.

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