Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 14 · 2026-10-05

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)

A few people think that it is better to make friends who always have the same opinions as them, while others say that it is good idea to have friends who sometimes disagree with them. I agree to some extent because both opinions have thier own benefits.

On the one hand, choosing people with same perceptions can provide happiness and enjoyment. When people make friends with same opinions, they can enjoy each other company. spending time with them make them feel hapier and relaxed. For example, people who spend time with friends who have same opinions, it helps them feel more relaxed and reduce their stress. Therefore, choosing friedns with same opinion makes them happy and keeps their lives enjoyable.

On the other hand, other people believe itis good to have friends who sometimes disagree with them. This is because it helps them make correct decisions and also help them learn different opionions and learn skills from others. When friends sometimes can choose wrong path for their lives, they may not agree with them and help them to choose right one. To illustrate, A person who choose wrong step in their lives, other can correct them and advice them to choose right decision. It also gives them an opportunities to learn other important skills from other people. They can learn communication, decision-making and problem solving skills from people with opposite views.

In my opinion, making friends with same opinion helps them make same decision.They can choose their goals without asking to other people. For instance, friends with same opinion can help each other to choose same subject for their career. As a result, they can make wise decision about their future. Thus, making friends with similar views helps them choose important decsion.

In conclusion, choosing friends help them make happy and reduce their stress, whereas, making friend who sometimes disagree with them helps them choose correct path and make wise decision. They can also help them learn new skills.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

The response addresses the main parts of the task by discussing both views on friendship and providing the writer's own opinion. A position is presented, but the development of ideas is limited and somewhat repetitive. For instance, the discussion on having friends with similar opinions repeatedly circles back to the idea of feeling 'happy and relaxed' without extending the argument into deeper sociological or psychological aspects. Similarly, the points about disagreement helping with decision-making are underdeveloped and lack specific, well-elaborated examples, relying instead on vague generalisations like 'a person who choose wrong step'. To reach a higher level, the ideas need to be more fully extended and supported with clearer, more distinct reasoning and concrete examples.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The essay displays some overall organisation, with a clear introduction, separate body paragraphs for each view, and a concluding section. However, there is a lack of clear progression throughout the response, as the arguments tend to loop and reiterate similar points rather than building systematically. Cohesive devices are used, but they are sometimes mechanical or repetitive, such as the frequent reliance on 'On the one hand', 'On the other hand', and 'For example'. Additionally, referencing is occasionally unclear, as seen in sentences like 'When friends sometimes can choose wrong path for their lives, they may not agree with them', where the pronoun reference between friends and the individual is ambiguous. Paragraphing is present, but internal paragraph cohesion needs strengthening to ensure a smoother flow of ideas.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

The vocabulary used is limited and minimally adequate for the task, demonstrating an attempt to discuss social relationships and decision-making. There is noticeable repetition of basic words and phrases, such as 'opinions', 'friends', 'choose', and 'same'. Furthermore, there are frequent word choice, word form, and spelling errors throughout the text, including 'thier', 'hapier', 'friedns', 'itis', 'opionions', and 'decsion'. Collocations are also sometimes unnatural, such as 'make same decision' instead of 'reach a consensus' or 'make similar choices'. These lexical inaccuracies and the restricted range of vocabulary occasionally cause strain for the reader and prevent the response from achieving a higher level.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The writer uses a limited range of sentence structures, relying heavily on simple sentences and basic complex forms, which are often faulty when attempted. There are frequent grammatical errors, particularly concerning subject-verb agreement ('a few people think... while others say', 'spending time with them make them'), article omission or misuse ('choose wrong step'), and prepositions. For example, phrases like 'asking to other people' and 'choose same subject for their career' contain grammatical slips within patterns. Punctuation is generally basic, and capitalization errors occur mid-sentence ('To illustrate, A person...'). These frequent errors require the reader to occasionally decode the intended meaning, which is characteristic of this level of grammatical control.

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.