Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 14 · 2026-09-26
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 5.0)
Some individuals think that having friends with similar view and opinion is better. While some people oppose that, becuase they believe sometimes critics or disagree from your friends is important for good development. In my opinion, same opinions friends can be helpful for motivation and confidence booster but opposition or criticism always useful for character building and progress.
Firstly, same mindset friends are blessing. It helps people to find motivation in work places and sports. Additionally, its also help to boost people's confidence level and their work efficiency improve day-to-day. For example, having same opinion on diet and physical health issues join gym, then both friends gives compliment to each other while doing exercises.
On the other hand, sometimes having versitial opinion friends play a very vital role in character building and highlights main issues of people's dealing in their decision making process. Furthermore, opposing doing the same things again and again open the doors of development and progress, that is also an important aspect especially in career promote. For example, a person still go to library for collecting information in old fashion way, and having a friend who use AI t
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0
The response attempts to address both views regarding friendship preferences and gives a clear personal opinion. However, the task achievement is heavily impacted by the length requirement, as the essay contains only 192 words, failing the 250-word minimum requirement. Consequently, the ideas remain under-developed and are cut short abruptly at the end. For instance, the discussion on career progression ends mid-sentence ('and having a friend who use AI t'). While the student identifies valid points about motivation and character building, the lack of full development and the severe under-length penalty restrict the score to Band 5.0.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0
The essay is organised into basic paragraphs, attempting an introduction, two body paragraphs containing arguments, and a conclusion structure, though the text cuts off prematurely. Cohesive devices such as 'Firstly', 'Additionally', 'On the other hand', and 'Furthermore' are employed to sequence ideas, although their usage is sometimes mechanical. Referencing is generally clear, but the logical progression is hindered by grammatical inaccuracies and the abrupt ending of the response. Paragraphing is attempted, but overall, the coherence suffers from the incomplete nature of the writing. This performance aligns with the Band 5 descriptors.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.0
The vocabulary used is adequate for basic communication, featuring words like 'motivation', 'confidence', 'character building', and 'efficiency'. However, there are notable lexical errors and awkward collocations throughout the text, such as 'similar view and opinion', 'critics or disagree', and 'versitial opinion friends'. The student attempts some less common phrasing like 'character building' and 'decision making process', but frequent word choice and spelling errors (e.g., 'becuase', 'versitial') prevent the score from reaching Band 6. The lexical range is limited and repetitive, fitting a Band 5 profile.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0
The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but the grammar is frequently inaccurate. There are numerous grammatical errors, such as subject-verb agreement issues ('same opinions friends can be', 'their work efficiency improve'), incorrect word forms ('disagree from your friends', 'opposing doing'), and missing articles or prepositions. Sentence structures often break down, and the final sentence is incomplete. While the meaning can mostly be discerned despite these errors, the high frequency of inaccurate complex structures places this performance firmly at Band 5.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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