Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 13 · 2026-08-07

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Many working people get little or no exercise either during the working day or in their free time, and have health problems as a result.

Why do many working people not get enough exercise?

What can be done about this problem?

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

 

Student answer (Band 5.5)

Exercise and walk play an important role in your health. It helps people to maintain their fitness and they feel more confident when they are healthy not in terms of their health but also in mental point of view. In today's busy world people are so occupied with their professional or personal life that they do not have enough time for exercise.

There are so many reasons for not doing exercise on regular basis. Firstly I believe in this digital era priorities have been changed. People are more focussed on their career instead of their health. Everybody is busy in earning money while neglecting their health. Secondly people have too much working hours and they do not get enough time for themselves. For instance a Branch Operation Manager works in a bank, he goes for office early morning and leaves for home after 8pm. We can have an idea by realizing his situation that he might have so much work and now he is tired that unable to do exercise or go for a gym. Thirdly unemployment could be another reason like everybody is working so hard and it is very tough to get bread and butter economically. Fitness gyms' rates are very high that people cannot afford.

Furthermore, people do not have an idea that they can be prone to serious health issues like cardiovascular diseases especially if they are obese or overweight.

In this regard I think there is a serious need of giving awareness to the people about having exercise or doing walk regularly. For this we can run different campaigns and we also can arrange talk shows with doctors so they highlight the importance of doing exercise and how it is related to our health.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses both parts of the prompt: reasons for the lack of exercise and potential solutions. However, the development is uneven. While the reasons (career focus, long working hours, and financial constraints) are relevant, they are somewhat under-developed. The example of the bank manager is a good attempt at support, but the third point regarding unemployment is slightly confusing in its connection to gym costs. The solutions provided are somewhat generic and could be expanded with more detail on how these campaigns would be implemented or who should lead them. Overall, the response covers the requirements but lacks the depth needed for a higher band.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organized into clear paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the argument. There is a logical progression from the problem to the causes and finally to the solutions. However, the use of cohesive devices is somewhat mechanical and repetitive (e.g., 'Firstly', 'Secondly', 'Thirdly'). Additionally, some transitions between sentences are abrupt, such as the sudden introduction of the health consequences paragraph, which feels disconnected from the preceding points about why people do not exercise. Improving the variety of linking words and ensuring smoother transitions between ideas would enhance the flow.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is adequate for the task, allowing the writer to communicate their ideas clearly. There are some attempts at less common collocations, such as 'prone to serious health issues' and 'cardiovascular diseases'. However, there are also instances of awkward phrasing or word choice, such as 'mental point of view' instead of 'mental health' and 'doing walk' instead of 'taking a walk'. The range is sufficient to convey meaning, but it lacks the precision and flexibility required for a higher band score. Expanding the range of synonyms and refining collocations would be beneficial.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are frequent grammatical errors, particularly with articles ('the' gym, 'a' bank), subject-verb agreement ('Exercise and walk play'), and prepositions. For example, 'Everybody is busy in earning money' should be 'busy earning money'. There are also minor punctuation issues throughout. While these errors do not significantly impede communication, they occur frequently enough to prevent the response from reaching a higher band. Focusing on sentence construction and proofreading for basic grammatical accuracy will help improve the score.

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

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