Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-09-14

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 6.5)

The illustration shows the process of producing sugar from sugarcane.

Overall, it is a man-made linear process consisting of several stages, beginning with the cultivation of sugarcane plants and ending with the production of sugar. This is achieved by processing the harvested sugarcane and purifying it to obtain the final edible product.

The process starts with growing sugarcane crops for around one to one and a half years, which are then harvested either manually with the help of agricultural equipment or mechanically using large machines. Furthermore, both mechanically and manually harvested sugarcanes are then crushed with the help of a machine to extract juice from them. Subsequently, the extracted juice is poured into a limestone filter to purify the liquid.

At the fifth stage, the purified sugarcane juice is poured into an evaporator, and by providing heat, the juice becomes syrup. Afterwards, the syrup is subjected to centrifugation, separating the sugar crystals from the remaining liquid. Thereafter, the sugar crystals are dried and cooled, resulting in the final product of the process.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0

The student provides a clear, well-structured overview of the entire sugar manufacturing process from start to finish. All key stages are identified and reported, beginning with cultivation and harvesting, passing through crushing, filtering, evaporating, and centrifuging, and concluding with the drying and cooling of sugar crystals. The response accurately highlights both mechanical and manual harvesting methods as shown in the diagram. There is no irrelevant information, and the main features are successfully selected and summarised, satisfying the requirements of a Band 7 or Band 8 response.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The response demonstrates a clear logical progression throughout, guiding the reader smoothly from the initial growing phase to the final product. Paragraphing is used effectively and appropriately, with a distinct introduction, an overview paragraph, and well-organized body paragraphs detailing sequential steps. Cohesive devices such as 'beginning with', 'Furthermore', 'Subsequently', and 'Afterwards' are employed to connect ideas, although some connectors like 'Furthermore' are slightly less suited for sequencing a physical process than temporal markers. Overall, the organizational structure is coherent and easy to follow, aligning closely with the Band 7 descriptors.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The student uses a sufficient and generally appropriate range of vocabulary relevant to process diagrams, such as 'cultivation', 'harvested', 'man-made linear process', 'extracted', and 'evaporator'. Less common lexical items are attempted with some awareness of style, for instance, 'centrifugation' and 'edible product'. While there are a few minor lexical choices that could be more precise—such as using 'poured' for passing juice through a filter or into a large evaporator—the vocabulary is adequate to convey the intended meaning without causing confusion. Spelling is accurate throughout.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.5

A good mix of simple and complex sentence structures is used to describe the process, including relative clauses and participial phrases such as 'beginning with the cultivation of sugarcane plants' and 'separating the sugar crystals from the remaining liquid'. Grammatical control is generally strong, with accurate use of passive voice constructions ('is poured', 'is subjected'), which are essential for describing processes. Errors are very infrequent and do not impede communication. The control over grammar and punctuation comfortably supports a Band 7 rating.

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