Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-09-29

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 5.0)

The diagram illustrate the process of making sugar from sugar cane.

Overall, sugara making process has totel seven steps which is explained below.

In the very first step sugar canes planted in a farms which takes 12 to 18 months to grow. After that period, sugar canes are ready to harvest. The second step is harvesting which can be done by workes or by machines. Juice is extracted from the sugar canes in thired step. But these juice contains some impurities so it can not be use directly. Limestone filter is used in forth step of sugar making process to purifying juice. In the next step clean juice is transfer to the furnace. Due to extream heat juice turns in to syrup. The sixth step which is centrifuge,in this step centrifugetion force is used to separates sugar particals from syrup. In last step sugar crystals are transfered to the drum which is used fro drying and cooling purpose.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

The student attempts to summarise the diagram illustrating the sugar-making process from sugar cane, satisfying the minimum length requirement with 158 words. Most of the main stages are identified, from growing and harvesting through to crushing, purifying, evaporating, centrifuging, and drying/cooling. However, the response suffers from several mechanical description flaws and lacks a well-developed overview. For instance, the opening overview states that the process has 'totel seven steps which is explained below,' which is a mechanical listing rather than a true academic overview highlighting key stages. Furthermore, there are minor inaccuracies in reporting the visual details, such as missing the two distinct harvesting methods shown in the diagram (manual vs. mechanical). Because the information is presented sequentially with some under-developed interpretation and minor omissions, it aligns best with Band 5.5 to 6.0 descriptors.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

The response exhibits a basic chronological progression, moving through the stages using simple transition markers such as 'In the very first step,' 'After that period,' and 'In the next step.' However, paragraphing is poorly handled; almost the entire body of the response is crammed into a single massive paragraph following the introduction, which detracts from overall visual and logical organisation. Cohesive devices are at times repetitive and mechanical (e.g., repeating 'step' frequently). Referencing is occasionally confusing, such as 'these juice' instead of 'this juice'. Because the logical flow is somewhat hindered by inadequate paragraphing and repetitive cohesive links, the cohesion profile fits a Band 5.0.

Lexical Resource: Band 4.5

The vocabulary used is relatively basic and repetitive, with frequent spelling and word-choice errors that occasionally strain the reader. Examples of lexical errors include 'illustrate' instead of 'illustrates', 'sugara making' instead of 'sugar-making', 'totel' instead of 'total', 'workes' instead of 'workers', 'thired' instead of 'third', 'forth' instead of 'fourth', 'purifying' instead of 'purify', 'extream' instead of 'extreme', 'centrifugetion' instead of 'centrifugation', 'particals' instead of 'particles', and 'fro' instead of 'for'. While the student attempts some less common vocabulary related to the process (e.g., 'limestone filter', 'evaporator', 'centrifuge'), the high density of basic spelling and grammatical-category errors limits the score to a Band 4.5.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 4.5

The student demonstrates a very limited range of grammatical structures. Simple sentences dominate, and attempts at complex structures frequently contain serious errors, such as subject-verb agreement issues ('sugar canes planted in a farms which takes') and fragment clauses ('which is explained below'). Punctuation is also problematic, including missing commas and incorrect clause attachments (e.g., 'The sixth step which is centrifuge,in this step centrifugetion force is used...'). Frequent errors in tense, article usage, and plurals cause noticeable difficulty for the reader throughout the text. Consequently, the grammar profile falls firmly into the Band 4.5 range.

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

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.