Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-10-12

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 6.0)

The diagram illustrates the production process for producing sugar from sugar cane.

After a careful examination of the diagram, we can see that it is a seven step process, and different kinds of equipment are used in it.

The process is initiated by growing sugar canes which takes almost 12 to 18 months.Once the sugar canes have grown they are then harvest and stored. Afterwards, the sugar canes are crushed, and converted into sugar cane juice. In the fourth step the juice is purified using a limestone filter.

In the fifth step the purified juice is put into an evaporator and is evaporated for some time untill the juice takes a syrup form. In the second last step an equipment, called centrifuge, is used to separate sugar crystals from the syrup, and finally in the last step of the process the sugar crystals are dryed and cooled in a container, and as a result we get sugar as a final product.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the process as having seven stages and describe the main transformation from growing cane to finished sugar, including purification, evaporation and separation in a centrifuge. The sequence is generally accurate, and the 12–18-month growing period is reported correctly. However, the response gives little overview of the process as a whole beyond its number of steps, and some important details are omitted: harvesting can be mechanical or manual, and crushing extracts juice before it is purified. The final stage is also described as drying the crystals “in a container,” which is not clearly supported by the diagram. A clearer overview of the start-to-finish process and more precise reporting of these features would make the summary more complete.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The stages are presented in a logical order, and sequencing phrases such as “Afterwards,” “In the fifth step,” and “finally” help the reader follow the process. The response also moves from the opening description into the stages without losing the overall sequence. However, it is written as one continuous paragraph, so the introduction, overview and process details are not clearly separated. Some transitions are repetitive or mechanical, particularly the repeated references to numbered steps. Grouping the stages into paragraphs and using a concise overview before the detailed sequence would improve progression. The link between harvesting and crushing could also be made clearer by noting that either harvesting method feeds into the same next stage.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use a suitable range of process vocabulary, including “limestone filter,” “evaporator,” “syrup,” and “centrifuge,” which allows you to describe the main equipment and transformations. Some wording is less precise or repetitive: “production process for producing” repeats the same idea, while “takes a syrup form” is an awkward collocation. There are also spelling errors in “untill” and “dryed,” and “equipment” is used vaguely where the specific machine name is available. These issues do not prevent understanding, but more accurate collocations and careful spelling would strengthen the description. Prefer concise, precise terms such as “is converted into syrup” and “the crystals are dried and cooled.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

The response includes both simple and more developed sentence forms, for example the clause beginning “Once the sugar canes have grown” and the sentence explaining that the centrifuge separates crystals from syrup. Most of the sequence remains understandable, but some grammatical errors persist. In “they are then harvest,” the passive construction needs a past participle (“harvested”); “which takes almost 12 to 18 months” is an awkward construction for a duration; and “an equipment” has an article error. There are also punctuation and spacing problems, such as the missing space after “months.” and the comma before “and finally.” Greater control of passive forms, articles and sentence punctuation would improve accuracy while retaining the useful range of structures.

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