Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 14 · 2026-10-22

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)

Undoubtedly, online shopping is gainning ground by leaps and bounds. It is claimed that it will become a reason of closing the shops in towns and cities. It is actually a useful method of buying things as it is time saving and work-life balance approach but it still cannot compete with offline shopping. I believe that in-store shopping will not be replaced by digital shopping.

By explaing the benefits of in-person shopping. The prominent one is true colour and size. To explian this, by visiting to the store to shope something, people have options to try the size and see the variety of colour and designs. Along with this, it is a best way to bargain. Some people have suficiant knowledge about the product's quality and meterial and this can be identified by taking a look in person. They can bargain with the shop keeper about the price. By this, they can save a good amount which can be utilized to manage other things.

Moreover, It acts as a stress buster activity for people with hectic schedules. People go out and do window shopping. This helps them to reduce their stress and anxiety.

To conclude, offline shopping cannot be replaced by the onine shoppins as it is reliable, stress reliever and good option to bargain.

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response5.5
Coherence and Cohesion6.0
Lexical Resource5.5
Grammatical Range and Accuracy5.0
Overall5.5

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

Your position is clear: you believe online shopping will not replace physical shops, and you give relevant reasons, including being able to check products, bargain, and enjoy shopping as a way to reduce stress. These points address the question, but they are not developed evenly. The discussion of checking size and colour and negotiating prices includes some explanation, while the stress-relief point is brief and would benefit from a specific example. The response also does not explore why online shopping might continue to grow or acknowledge circumstances in which it could replace some shops. The required minimum of 250 words is not met, which limits the opportunity to develop your argument. Add fuller explanations and a relevant example to make your case more complete.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction states your view, the body presents reasons, and a conclusion restates your position. Paragraphing helps separate the main points, and transitions such as “Moreover” and “To conclude” make the overall direction easy to follow. However, the second paragraph begins with the fragment “By explaining the benefits of in-person shopping,” rather than a complete sentence, so the link into the first reason is awkward. The ideas within that paragraph also move quickly from product inspection to bargaining without a clear progression. Develop each reason in its own complete sequence—claim, explanation, and example—and use references such as “this ability” to make connections clearer and less mechanical.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use a relevant range of vocabulary for the topic, including “work-life balance,” “variety,” “bargain,” “quality,” and “stress and anxiety.” These choices help communicate your main reasons, and some phrases show an attempt to use more specific language. However, several spelling errors and unnatural combinations reduce precision, including “gainning,” “suficiant,” “onine shoppins,” and “a reason of closing.” Phrases such as “true colour and size” and “stress buster activity” are understandable but not natural in this context. Aim for accurate, conventional collocations and proofread spelling carefully. More precise terms for product inspection and the convenience of online shopping would also help you compare the two forms of shopping more effectively.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more extended sentence forms, and the main position is generally understandable. For example, “People go out and do window shopping” is a clear simple sentence, while the sentence beginning “Some people have…” attempts to connect product knowledge with bargaining. However, the range is limited, and errors recur in sentence construction and grammatical patterns. “By explaining the benefits of in-person shopping” is a sentence fragment, and “by visiting to the store to shope something” has an awkward preposition pattern. There are also issues with articles and agreement, as in “it is a best way” and “It acts” after the plural subject “offline shopping” in the conclusion. Practise complete sentences and check articles, subject–verb agreement, and prepositions when revising.

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