Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-08-11

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 illustration depicts the process of sugar production from sugar cane. From crops to the end product, the image presented all the neccessary events in between the procedure of making the sugar. First of all, it took an year to one and a half year for a sugar cane crop to grow completely. After that, the process of harvesting occurs in step 2, which is shown to be done by both the farmers and the machines. Then it moves toward the crushing phase. The crushing results in making a juice of sugar cane, which gets purified by a limestone filter. Subsequently, the juice comes to the evaporation phase, in which it converts into syrup. In the sixth step, crystals were seperated from juice. This process is named as centrifuge. The last outcome is sugar. That sugar is dried and cooled to complete the whole process of making sugar from sugar cane.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response covers the main stages of the sugar production process from cultivation to the final product. However, it lacks a clear overview or summary of the process, which is essential for a high band score in Task 1. While the steps are identified, the description is somewhat mechanical and lacks the analytical comparison required to highlight the 'main features'. For instance, the transition between the harvesting and crushing phases is mentioned, but the relationship between the stages could be more clearly synthesised. To improve, ensure you include an introductory overview that summarises the key stages of the process.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The response is logically sequenced, following the chronological order of the diagram. The use of cohesive devices such as 'First of all', 'After that', 'Subsequently', and 'In the sixth step' helps guide the reader through the process. However, the response is presented as a single paragraph, which hinders the overall structure. For a higher score, you should organise the information into distinct paragraphs—for example, one for the cultivation and harvesting stages and another for the industrial processing stages. This would improve the clarity and flow of the report.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, with terms like 'harvesting', 'crushing', 'purified', 'evaporation', and 'centrifuge' used correctly. However, there are some spelling errors, such as 'neccessary' (necessary) and 'seperated' (separated). The range of vocabulary is somewhat limited and relies on basic phrasing. To reach a higher band, try to incorporate more precise academic collocations and avoid repetitive sentence structures. For example, instead of saying 'the process of harvesting occurs', you could use 'the harvesting stage is carried out'.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The response uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are several grammatical inaccuracies. For example, 'it took an year' should be 'it takes a year' (as the process is a general fact), and 'the image presented all the neccessary events' should be in the present tense ('presents'). Additionally, 'This process is named as centrifuge' is slightly awkward; 'This process is known as centrifugation' would be more natural. Increasing the variety of complex structures while ensuring tense consistency will help improve your score.

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

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