Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 14 · 2026-08-03

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Some people think it's better to choose friends who always have the same opinions as them. Other people believe it's good to have friends who sometimes disagree with them.

Discuss both these views and give your own opinion.

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

 

Student answer (Band 5.5)

Friendship is play crucial role in everyone's life. It is often argued that choose friends who have same opinions which as they have whereas, it completely fine have friends if they disagree with them. I consider that these both statements are great for them to development.

Admitedly, there are several benefits of having teammates with similar thinking. One of the advantages is reducing conflicts. To illustrate, when people have with same interests there are less chances of misunderstanding which become there friendship more strongest and trustworthy. For example, friends who have similar views on education or career goals can encourage each other to stay motivated and achieve success. Secondly, strong emotional support. This means, they support the in every difficult circumstances and encourage them to turn their dreams into reality which boost their confidence.

On the other hand, even though having friends of similar perspectives is fruitful for them, different thinking have more merits. learning new ideas is considered one of the major benefits. To explicate it, it develop their critical thinking as they have different ideas which broaden their horizon. For instance, when they have a lot of different thought they can also make decision independently which would be great for their future career as well. Furthermore, it can lead to open minded due to they can become problem solver and improve communication. hence this trend would be significant for their overall development.

In conclusion, although similar views on education and hobbies could be contribute better encouragement and motivate each other, different opinion have far more positive impact on them by developing problem solving skills, communication and become open minded.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response addresses both sides of the argument and provides a clear personal opinion in the introduction and conclusion. The ideas are relevant, such as the reduction of conflict for similar-minded friends and the development of critical thinking for those with differing views. However, the development of these points is somewhat superficial. For example, the explanation of how different opinions lead to independent decision-making is a bit vague. To reach a higher band, you should expand on your examples with more specific detail or logical steps to fully explore the implications of your arguments.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay is organised into logical paragraphs, each with a clear focus. You use some cohesive devices like 'On the other hand', 'To illustrate', and 'In conclusion' to guide the reader. However, the use of these devices is sometimes mechanical or slightly inaccurate, such as 'To explicate it' or 'due to they can become'. Additionally, there are instances where the flow between sentences is slightly disjointed due to grammatical errors. Improving the variety and precision of your linking words will help the progression of your ideas feel more natural and sophisticated.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using words like 'perspective', 'fruitful', and 'critical thinking'. However, there are several instances of awkward word choice and collocation errors, such as 'Friendship is play crucial role' (should be 'plays a crucial role') and 'become there friendship more strongest' (should be 'makes their friendship stronger'). Some phrasing is repetitive, and the vocabulary lacks the precision required for higher bands. Focusing on learning common collocations and ensuring word forms are used correctly in context will significantly improve your score in this area.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The essay contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors throughout. Common issues include subject-verb agreement ('different thinking have'), missing articles, and incorrect preposition usage ('have with same interests'). There are also errors in sentence construction, such as 'due to they can become', which impede the clarity of your points. While the meaning is generally understandable, the high frequency of these errors prevents the essay from reaching a higher band. You should focus on proofreading for basic errors like verb tense consistency and pluralisation.

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

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.