CELPIP® Writing Task 2 sample: Seasonal Window Improvement Survey

Responding to Survey Questions · 26 minutes · 150–200 words · Published 23 October 2026

Original practice questions in CELPIP® task formats, created independently by CELPIP Study.

Practice question

Margaux chairs Asterveil Housing Co-operative in Surrey and is surveying residents about a $24,000 window-improvement fund for its sixty apartments. The older windows let in winter drafts, while the twenty-four west-facing apartments also become uncomfortably warm on sunny summer afternoons. The fund can either seal windows in every apartment to reduce drafts or install adjustable exterior shades on the west-facing windows to block summer sun, but it cannot cover both. Another major window project will not be funded for three years.

Which window improvement should receive funding now, considering residents' different seasonal needs? Explain your choice.

Option A: Seal windows in all sixty apartments, reducing winter drafts but leaving summer sun unblocked.
Option B: Install adjustable exterior shades for twenty-four west-facing apartments, reducing summer sun but leaving winter drafts unresolved.

Model answers

Level 7 sample answer

174 words

I prefer Option B because the apartments facing west need better protection from the summer sun. Window sealing would help everyone in winter, but it would not solve the problem of rooms getting too hot.

First, an apartment should be comfortable in the afternoon as well as at night. I have visited a west-facing apartment where we kept moving our chairs away from the window. Closing the curtains made the room dark, but it still felt hot. Adjustable shades could reduce the sun before it reaches the glass.

Also, the shades could be adjusted when residents wanted more light. This seems useful because people use their rooms in different ways. Some people work at a table near the window, while others sit there to relax. They could control the shade instead of keep the room closed all afternoon.

Only twenty-four apartments would receive shades, so I understand why other residents might disagree. However, helping the homes with the strongest afternoon sun seem fair to me. Margaux should choose the shades for this funding round.

Why this answer is at level 7

This level 7 answer presents a clear preference and supports it with an accessible example of summer discomfort. Compared with the stronger answers, its reasoning is more repetitive, its vocabulary is less precise, and some grammar is awkward; it also leaves the three-year funding gap unexplored.

Closing the curtains made the room dark, but it still felt hot. — Content/Coherence: The example clearly illustrates why indoor curtains may leave residents uncomfortable. A higher-level answer would develop the connection between this experience and prioritizing concentrated summer discomfort over winter drafts throughout the building.
This seems useful because people use their rooms in different ways. — Vocabulary: The meaning is clear, but “useful” and “different ways” describe the benefit broadly. The stronger answers use more precise language to connect window improvements with usable space, changing conditions, and residents' control.
They could control the shade instead of keep the room closed all afternoon. — Readability: The comparison is understandable, but “instead of keep” should be “instead of keeping.” A higher-level answer would maintain grammatical control while expressing this practical benefit more precisely.
Only twenty-four apartments would receive shades, so I understand why other residents might disagree. — Task Fulfillment: This acknowledges the unequal distribution of benefits. However, the response does not examine the three-year wait, which makes the unresolved winter drafts consequential. A higher-level answer would incorporate that constraint into its justification for funding shades now.

Level 9 sample answer

182 words

I would choose Option A, sealing the windows in all sixty apartments. Exterior shades would provide welcome summer relief, but a co-operative investment should also be judged by how widely its benefits are shared.

The winter drafts affect the building's older windows, and sealing them would tackle a problem across the whole property. In my apartment, a draft sometimes makes the window-side table too cold for a long meal. Improving the seal would make that part of the room more usable without asking residents to rearrange their furniture every winter.

Coverage is another important consideration. The shades would help twenty-four west-facing apartments, leaving thirty-six homes without an improvement from this funding round. Targeted spending can be justified, but the three-year wait before another project makes that imbalance harder to accept. Sealing offers every household something tangible now, which could help maintain support for shared spending.

I recognize that this choice leaves summer overheating unresolved. Nevertheless, Margaux should prioritize the work that reaches all residents and addresses cold-weather comfort. The co-operative can then consider targeted summer measures when another funded project becomes possible.

Why this answer is at level 9

This level 9 answer develops a coherent case for sealing through practical winter benefits, building-wide coverage, and the three-year funding gap. It is more controlled and specific than level 7, but its treatment of summer discomfort remains brief compared with level 11's closer analysis of unequal needs.

Sealing offers every household something tangible now, which could help maintain support for shared spending. — Content/Coherence: This extends the argument beyond individual comfort to support for co-operative spending. A higher-level answer would also explain more fully why that shared benefit outweighs the concentrated summer discomfort in west-facing apartments.
a co-operative investment should also be judged by how widely its benefits are shared. — Vocabulary: The evaluative language establishes a clear principle for allocating the fund. Compared with level 7's broader wording, it is purposeful and precise. A higher-level response would distinguish broad coverage from the relative intensity of residents' needs more explicitly.
Targeted spending can be justified, but the three-year wait before another project makes that imbalance harder to accept. — Readability: The concession and contrast fit smoothly into a controlled sentence, making the reasoning easy to follow. A higher-level answer would retain this clarity while giving the competing seasonal need similarly developed treatment.
I recognize that this choice leaves summer overheating unresolved. — Task Fulfillment: The answer directly acknowledges the cost of choosing sealing. However, this concession is brief. A higher-level response would weigh what leaving west-facing rooms uncomfortable during the three-year wait means for the funding decision.

Level 11 sample answer

192 words

I support Option B, installing adjustable exterior shades on the twenty-four west-facing apartments. Equal spending per apartment is an understandable goal, but shared funds should also respond to unequal exposure to the weather.

The summer problem is concentrated where the afternoon sun is strongest. Sealing every window would distribute an improvement broadly while leaving that particular source of discomfort untouched. In a west-facing apartment I previously rented, the desk became unpleasantly warm just as I needed it for afternoon work; moving elsewhere meant abandoning the only suitable workspace.

Exterior shades would address the sunlight before it entered the room, while their adjustability would let residents admit light when conditions changed. That flexibility matters: a fixed response that kept homes dark throughout the day would create another compromise. The proposed shades offer residents greater control over how their rooms function across changing summer conditions.

I would not dismiss winter drafts, especially with another project three years away. Nevertheless, the strongest case for this funding is to address the concentrated summer problem directly. Margaux should fund the shades now so residents can use their west-facing rooms comfortably on sunny afternoons during the three-year wait.

Why this answer is at level 11

This level 11 answer combines precise language, fluent sentence control, and a sustained argument about unequal seasonal needs. It connects concentrated sun exposure with lost use of living space, explains the value of adjustable shades, and acknowledges winter drafts within the three-year funding constraint.

moving elsewhere meant abandoning the only suitable workspace. — Content/Coherence: The example identifies a concrete consequence of overheating: losing access to a functional workspace. This develops the case beyond level 7's general discomfort and supports the argument that concentrated needs can justify targeted funding.
shared funds should also respond to unequal exposure to the weather. — Vocabulary: This concise wording expresses the central allocation principle precisely. It moves beyond describing shades as useful and provides a clear alternative to level 9's emphasis on how widely benefits are shared.
That flexibility matters: a fixed response that kept homes dark throughout the day would create another compromise. — Readability: The colon connects the claim directly to its explanation, while the conditional wording handles a potential drawback smoothly. The sentence develops the value of adjustability without losing clarity or repeating earlier points.
I would not dismiss winter drafts, especially with another project three years away. — Task Fulfillment: This acknowledges both the competing winter need and the funding delay. Together with the final recommendation, it shows that choosing shades involves accepting an unresolved problem while prioritizing direct relief for the west-facing apartments.

What moves an answer from 7 to 9 to 11

These are model answers written to show each level. The labels are practice estimates, not examiner scores.

State a clear survey choice and develop reasons with concrete examples. Explain consequences, connect paragraphs and address the competing option where useful without losing your position.

Content/Coherence: Level 7 models communicate the main ideas; level 9 models develop relevant details with clear connections; level 11 models sustain precise, well-integrated development.
Vocabulary: Compare adequate everyday wording with more varied, accurate choices at level 9 and flexible, precise expression at level 11.
Readability: Look for increasingly controlled grammar, sentence variety, punctuation and paragraphing. Complexity helps when it keeps the message easy to read.
Task Fulfillment: Compare how fully the response addresses the request, develops enough relevant detail and maintains an appropriate tone for the audience within the task limits.

Assess the criteria together. A longer answer or rarer words alone do not establish a higher level.

Answer this question and get your level