Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-10-26

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 5.5)

The given diagram illustrates the producing process for making sugar from sugar cane.There were 7 steps given in the image.

Overall, the sugar production involved 7 main stages of making sugar in which beginning is growth of sugar cane and engind is drying and cooling the sugar cane. The process completely takes several months in initial stage and then there are more steps like hrvesting and crushing.

Initially sugar cane is taking 12-18 months in growing. Mainly rest of growing process is not taking that much time.The second stage is harvesting in which farmer picked out the crops and put the sugar canes in the machine for making juice.In the fourth stage the extracted juice is purified by passing it through the limestone filter.Then purified in the heated evaporator and remove extra water from the juice and turned it into syrup.Then next step of process is centrifuge in which it separates sugar crystals from the liquid.Lastly, put that sugar crystals in drying and cooling and turned into a sugar.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the process as having seven stages and include the key starting point, the 12–18-month growing period, and the final drying and cooling stage. Several central steps are also reported, including crushing, limestone filtration, evaporation and centrifuging. However, the overview is not fully accurate: the final product is sugar, not “drying and cooling the sugar cane,” and the claim that the remaining stages take little time is unsupported. The harvesting description also says the farmer puts the cane into a machine, rather than noting that harvesting can be done mechanically or by hand. To strengthen the response, give a concise, accurate overview of the transformation from cane to sugar and describe each stage without adding assumptions.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response follows the process in a generally understandable order, using sequence markers such as “Initially,” “The second stage,” “Then next step,” and “Lastly.” The opening also signals that the diagram contains seven stages. However, paragraphing is limited, and the overview and detailed account are not clearly separated. Some links are mechanical or unclear: “Then purified in the heated evaporator” does not clearly connect the juice to the next stage, while “Mainly rest of growing process” interrupts the progression without adding useful information. Organise the response into a short introduction and overview, followed by a clearly sequenced process paragraph. Use linking phrases to show how each material changes and moves to the next stage.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant process vocabulary, including “harvesting,” “crushing,” “limestone filter,” “evaporator,” “syrup,” and “centrifuge,” which helps communicate the main stages. However, the range is limited and some word choices or collocations are inaccurate, such as “the producing process,” “picked out the crops,” and “put that sugar crystals in drying and cooling.” Spelling errors such as “engind,” “hrvesting,” and “separates” (where the intended form is “separates” in context) also reduce precision. Aim for more natural process language, for example, “the cane is harvested,” “the juice is filtered,” and “the crystals are dried and cooled.” Check spelling carefully and avoid repeating general words such as “step” and “process.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and longer sentences, and the sequence is usually understandable. However, errors in verb forms, articles, agreement and sentence construction are frequent enough to make some parts awkward. For example, “sugar cane is taking 12-18 months in growing” needs a passive form such as “sugar cane takes 12–18 months to grow,” while “the process completely takes” is not a natural grammatical construction. The sentence beginning “Then purified in the heated evaporator” lacks a clear subject, and “put that sugar crystals” has an article and number problem. Practise describing processes consistently in the present simple passive: “The juice is purified,” “It is heated,” and “The crystals are dried and cooled.” Also check sentence boundaries and spacing after full stops.

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