Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-11-10

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The diagram below shows the manufacturing process for making sugar from sugar cane.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

How sugar is produced from sugar cane

Student answer (Band 5.5)

The diagram illustrate the manufacturing process for getting suger from sugar cane.

Inittially, we can see the sugar cane which grow in land and after that start the cutting process furthermore harvesting, crushing, purifying juice, evaporator, centrifuge and altimately, drying and cooling.

At first stage, we plant sugar cane at farme then we give 12 to 18 months for growth of sugar cane, after this we able to cut the all sugar cane and start a process of harvesting when it will be complete then we move to another step which is crushing the sugar cane when complete it then we get juice.

At the end of getting juice we start to purify the juice by using limestine filter, when we successfully complete this process then we start to evaporator of juice by using the source of heat after this work we start another process which is centrifuge in the process we separates suger crystals from syrup, at the end where we'll do one more step which drying and cooling the sugar.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

You identify the main stages in the correct general order, including the 12–18-month growing period, juice purification, evaporation, centrifuging, and final drying and cooling. However, the account is only partly developed: the overview is mostly a list of stages rather than a clear summary of the process’s overall structure, and some details are unclear or inaccurate. For example, harvesting is described as “cut[ting] the all sugar cane,” but the diagram shows two harvesting methods—mechanical and manual. The key transformations could also be stated more precisely: crushing extracts juice, evaporation turns it into syrup, and centrifuging separates sugar crystals from syrup. A stronger response would give a concise overview and explain these important changes clearly.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response follows the process from growing through to drying and cooling, so the reader can generally understand the intended sequence. You also use sequencing expressions such as “At first stage,” “after this,” and “At the end.” However, the organisation is weakened by a long, crowded second paragraph in which several stages are joined into one sentence. The opening list repeats information that is then described again, and connectors such as “when” and “then” are used repeatedly, sometimes making the relationships between steps unclear. Separate the overview from the detailed stages, and use shorter sentences with clear links—for example, one sentence for juice extraction and purification, followed by another for evaporation and separation.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant process vocabulary, including “harvesting,” “crushing,” “purify,” “filter,” “evaporator,” and “centrifuge,” which helps communicate the subject. The range is nevertheless limited, and several noticeable spelling and word-choice errors reduce precision: “suger,” “Inittially,” “limestine,” and “farme.” Some phrases are also unnatural, such as “getting suger from sugar cane,” “start to evaporator of juice,” and “at the end of getting juice.” Aim for accurate process collocations, such as “extract juice,” “filter the juice through limestone,” and “heat the juice until it becomes syrup.” Using these more precise expressions would make the description clearer and more appropriate to an academic process report.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt to connect stages using longer sentences, but the response relies heavily on simple clauses joined together, and these longer constructions are often faulty. For example, “The diagram illustrate” has subject–verb disagreement, while “the sugar cane which grow in land” has errors in agreement and clause structure. In “when it will be complete then we move,” the tense and sentence construction are not controlled. Missing or incorrect articles and plurals also appear in phrases such as “At first stage” and “cut the all sugar cane.” These errors sometimes make the process difficult to follow. Practise accurate present-simple descriptions of general processes, and divide long sequences into complete sentences with clear punctuation.

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