Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-10-01

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 depicts how sugar is manufactured from sugar cane.

Overall, it can be seen that the manufacturing method for producing sugar from sugar cane is a multistep linear process which consists of seven different stages as well as a number of different tools and infrastructure, which starts with growing sugar cane and ends with drying and cooling sugar.

In the first stage, sugar canes are grown for a period of time( ranging from 12 to 18 months). Then, sugar canes are harvested both manually by human labor and mechanically by a large machine. Next, the harvested sugar canes are crushed by a crushing machine where juice is made from sugar canes simultaneously. Following by this, juice is purified in a limestone filter.

In the subsequent stage, purified juice is become syrup by giving heat in a evaporator. In stage six, syrup is centrifuged by a process in which sugar crystals are separated from syrap. In the last and final stage, centrifuged sugar is dried as well as cooled on a vast container.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

The response addresses all parts of the task by outlining the main stages of the sugar manufacturing process, satisfying the requirements for a Band 6.5. The overview clearly highlights that it is a seven-stage linear process starting with growing and ending with drying and cooling. Main features such as the two harvesting methods, crushing, filtration, evaporation, and centrifugation are reported. However, some parts are slightly under-developed or lack precise elaboration—for instance, describing the evaporation stage simply as giving heat without mentioning that the juice becomes syrup in an evaporator. To reach the next level, all key features of the process diagrams should be more fully and seamlessly integrated without minor omissions.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The response demonstrates a coherent overall arrangement with clear logical progression from the first stage to the final stage. Paragraphing is used appropriately to group related steps of the process. Cohesive devices such as 'In the first stage', 'Then', 'Next', and 'In the subsequent stage' are employed to guide the reader through the sequence, though they occasionally feel a bit mechanical or repetitive. Reference words are generally clear, but transitional links like 'Following by this' are slightly non-standard. To achieve a higher band, the integration of cohesive devices needs to be more flexible and natural, ensuring that the flow between sentences requires less rigid signposting.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

An adequate range of vocabulary is used for the task, successfully attempting less common items related to industrial processes such as 'multistep', 'centrifuged', 'infrastructure', and 'manually'. However, there are some noticeable word choice and word formation inaccuracies, such as 'purified juice is become syrup' instead of 'becomes syrup', and 'syrap' instead of 'syrup'. These lexical errors do not impede communication, placing the response firmly at this level. To move further up, the student needs to demonstrate greater precision in word choices, better control over word forms, and entirely accurate spelling for technical terms associated with diagram tasks.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

The writer uses a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, including relative clauses such as 'a process in which sugar crystals are separated'. There is a control over basic sentence structures, but some errors persist, such as awkward passive constructions ('purified juice is become syrup') and prepositional errors ('on a vast container' instead of 'in'). Punctuation and article usage also contain occasional slips. Because the majority of sentences retain clear meaning despite these errors, the writing meets the criteria for this level. To improve, the student should focus on eliminating structural slips in passive verbs and prepositional collocations to produce a higher proportion of error-free complex sentences.

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