Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 14 · 2026-08-24
IELTS Writing Task 2 question
The growth of online shopping will one day lead to all shops in towns and cities closing.
Do you agree or disagree?
Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.
Student answer (Band 5.5)
In recent years, it has been discovered that an end will come for the shops in the rural and urban cities years to come due to the high rise of e-shopping. I disagree with this view, because of delay in supply and inability of some people to use the gadgets or other electronic devices.
I firmly believe that online shopping is safe and convenient to use but there are some citizens that do not have knowledge on how to operate a phone or any other gadgets. This sets of individual would prefer to do their shopping in the local store. For instance, an literate senior citizen that is living alone would rather visit the store to make his purchase than to shop online.
In addition, Local stores are reliable. Buying online could be delayed because of several process it entails. Most people that need an item urgently would prefer to visit the nearby store to get the necessary items needed. For instance, a person that got home late and needed to light the gas but have forgotten he has exhausted the matches, he would have to patronize the store in the area than ordering online which would take hours to make deliver
In conclusion, local shops can not be eradicated by the high patronage of online shopping due to the solution of urgent purchase and the availability to people who have difficulties to use the phone or other gadget to make purchase.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The response addresses the prompt by taking a clear position against the total closure of physical shops. However, the essay is under the 250-word minimum, which limits the depth of development. While the ideas regarding senior citizens and urgent needs are relevant, they are somewhat under-developed. The argument could be strengthened by exploring other factors, such as the social experience of shopping or the role of physical stores in local economies. Because the essay is slightly under-length, the development of ideas is constrained, preventing it from reaching a higher band.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0
The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, each with a clear central theme. Cohesive devices such as 'In addition', 'For instance', and 'In conclusion' are used to link ideas. However, the flow between sentences is sometimes mechanical, and the referencing is occasionally imprecise, such as in the second paragraph where 'This sets of individual' is grammatically awkward and disrupts the cohesion. The progression of ideas is generally clear, but the limited length prevents a more sophisticated development of the argument, which affects the overall coherence.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The vocabulary is adequate for the task but lacks variety and precision. There are several instances of awkward phrasing and word choice, such as 'high rise of e-shopping' instead of 'rise in online shopping', and 'patronize the store' used in a context that sounds slightly unnatural. The phrase 'an literate senior citizen' contains a clear error. While the meaning is generally conveyed, the range of vocabulary is limited, and there is a reliance on basic terms. To improve, you should focus on using more precise collocations and academic vocabulary.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors that occasionally impede the flow. Examples include 'an literate senior citizen' (article error), 'have forgotten he has exhausted the matches' (tense inconsistency), and 'take hours to make deliver' (incorrect word form). Subject-verb agreement is also inconsistent, such as 'local shops can not be eradicated... due to the solution of urgent purchase'. While the meaning is usually clear, the frequency of these errors prevents the essay from achieving a higher score.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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