Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-09-29

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

In many places, new homes are needed, but the only space available for building them is in the countryside. Some people believe it is more important to protect the countryside and not build new homes there.

What is your opinion about this?

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

 

Student answer (Band 5.5)

Nowadays, rural areas are the only option left as new homes are required to build. A number of individuals think that it is very necessary thing to protect the natural habitat of countryside area by not building new homes there. Even though, I disagree by not building homes in rural areas may cause problem in urban areas , but in long run and from the larger perspective, I believe that this is not the right approach for the people to adopt.

To begin with, currently population are increasing day by day. It is very important to build new homes for better management of a city area. As there is not enough place left to build a home, because of that traffic and accidents cases are rising day by day.

On the other hand, protecting the environment is the very important and by not allowing to build homes in countryside is a one way to secure the natural habitat of birds and animals. In simple words, by building homes in countryside apart from human, all lives will suffer as they loss their place to live. For example, birds are migrating towards rural side as they are not able to manage noise pollution in city.

Secondly, protecting environment is the key to survive for longer perspective. In other words, currently there are very less natural resources left and by harming them it directly affects the survival of lives in the world.

In a nut shell, building a new homes in countryside can certainly turnout to be a wise decision in the short term. However, I firmly believe that in long term to protect the natural habitat and natural resources for future aspects it is necessary to realize not to harm the environment.

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response5.5
Coherence and Cohesion5.5
Lexical Resource5.5
Grammatical Range and Accuracy5.0
Overall5.5

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

The response addresses the prompt by discussing the debate surrounding building new homes in the countryside versus protecting natural habitats. The writer takes a position, albeit somewhat confusingly phrased in the introduction: "Even though, I disagree by not building homes in rural areas may cause problem... but... I believe that this is not the right approach." Despite this tangled phrasing, the overall stance—that protecting the environment is more important in the long run—becomes clear by the end. Ideas are presented, such as population growth versus environmental conservation, but they are underdeveloped and lack specific supporting examples or elaboration. The body paragraphs tend to loop back to the same general points about protecting nature and resources without extending them fully. Consequently, the task is addressed, but the development of ideas remains somewhat repetitive and limited.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The essay is organised into multiple paragraphs, including an introduction, a body, and a conclusion, which helps create a basic framework. However, the logical progression is frequently disrupted by awkward transitions and confusing sentence structures. For instance, the transition "On the other hand..." introduces a counter-argument, but the subsequent paragraphing and referencing create confusion regarding the writer's actual stance. Cohesive devices are used, such as "To begin with," "Secondly," and "In a nut shell," but they are sometimes mechanical or misused in context. Paragraphing is attempted, though some paragraphs are very brief and fail to develop a single cohesive idea thoroughly. Overall, the arrangement provides a general coherence, but faulty referencing and abrupt shifts lower the effectiveness of the organisational structure.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The vocabulary used is generally adequate for conveying basic ideas, but it lacks the range and precision required for higher band scores. The student relies heavily on repetitive phrases and basic descriptors, such as "very important," "day by day," and "natural habitat." There are noticeable word choice and collocation inaccuracies throughout the text, including phrases like "new homes are required to build" instead of "are required to be built," and "there is not enough place left" instead of "space." Errors in word formation also appear, such as "apart from human, all lives will suffer as they loss their place to live" (where "loss" is used instead of the verb "lose"). While these lexical slips do not entirely impede communication, they reflect a limited vocabulary range and restrict the score to a band 5.5.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The text displays a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, but attempts at complex structures are frequently marred by grammatical errors. Examples include awkward phrasing and structural confusion, such as "by not allowing to build homes in countryside is a one way to secure..." and "building a new homes in countryside can certainly turnout..." There are frequent errors in article usage, prepositions, and verb tenses, such as "currently population are increasing" and "there are very less natural resources left." Punctuation and subject-verb agreement also present issues throughout the text. Although the meaning can generally be deciphered despite these persistent mistakes, the high frequency of grammatical inaccuracies places the essay firmly within the band 5.0 range.

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