Band 7.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.0 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-08-27

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 7.0)

The diagram shows how sugar is made from sugar cane plants. It explains the steps from growing the crop to making the final product.

Overall, the manufacturing process consists of seven main stages. It begins with growing the agricultural crop and ends with the collection of final cried sugar.

First, sugar cane is grown in fields for 12 to 18 months until is matures. Once fully grown, the plants are harvested either mechanically using a large tractor or manually by hand. Next, the collected sugar cane stalks are fed into a crushing machine, which squeezes out the juice.

After crushing, the raw juice passes through a limestone filter to be purified. Next, the clean juice is heated in an evaporator, where it turns into thick syrup. Following this, the syrup goes into a centrifuge machine that spins rapidly to separate the sugar crystals. Finally, these crystals are dried and cooled to create the finished products.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The response effectively covers all stages of the sugar manufacturing process, from the initial cultivation of sugar cane to the final product. You have successfully identified the main features and presented them in a logical, chronological order. The overview provides a clear summary of the process, noting the seven stages involved. To reach a higher band, you could improve by making more explicit comparisons between the two harvesting methods (mechanical vs. manual) or by highlighting the transformation of the substance more dynamically, for example, by describing the change in state from raw juice to syrup and then to crystals more descriptively.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.5

The response is well-organized and easy to follow. You have used a clear paragraph structure, with an introduction, an overview, and two body paragraphs detailing the process. Cohesive devices such as 'First', 'Once', 'Next', 'After', and 'Following this' are used appropriately to guide the reader through the sequence of events. The progression of ideas is logical, and the information is presented in a way that is easy to navigate. The use of referencing is clear, and the overall flow of the text is smooth and coherent throughout.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.5

You have used a sufficient range of vocabulary to describe the process accurately, including terms like 'harvested', 'crushing machine', 'purified', 'evaporator', and 'centrifuge'. The word choice is generally precise and appropriate for the context of a technical process. There is a minor error in the overview where you wrote 'cried sugar' instead of 'dried sugar', which is likely a typographical slip. To improve, try incorporating more sophisticated collocations or synonyms to describe the physical changes in the material, such as 'concentrated' or 'extracted'.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 7.0

The response demonstrates a good control of grammatical structures. You have successfully used a mix of simple and complex sentences, such as 'Once fully grown, the plants are harvested...' and '...where it turns into thick syrup.' There is a minor grammatical slip in the third paragraph: 'until is matures' should be 'until it matures'. However, these errors are infrequent and do not impede communication. The majority of your sentences are error-free, and the punctuation is used correctly to support the clarity of your writing.

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

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