Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-10-29

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 6.5)

The given diagram illustrates the steps involved in making sugar from sugar cane.

Overall, it is a seven-stage process starting from growing sugar canes and eventually ending up in drying and cooling the manufactured sugar.

In the beginning, farmers sow the seeds then sugar canes take the time duration of 12-14 months to grow. Subsequently, grown up sugar canes are harvested either by farmers themselves or machinery. In the third step, harvested sugar canes are crushed by crusher machine to obtain the juice. In the fourth step, the juice goes through the limestone filter for the purification. In the fifth step, the purified juice is put into the evaporator where heat is given and the purified juice becomes the syrup. In the sixth step, the obtained syrup is passed through the centrifuge that rotates and seperates the sugar crystals from the syrup. In the last step, the seperated sugar is placed openly for drying and cooling and eventually it becomes consumable.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

You give a clear account of the process, identify its seven stages, and include the key alternatives at harvesting and the separation of crystals in the centrifuge. The overview correctly identifies the start and end points. However, some details are inaccurate or added: the diagram gives a growing period of 12–18 months, not 12–14, and it does not show farmers sowing seeds or sugar being left openly to dry. The final stage is labelled drying and cooling, rather than becoming consumable. These points keep the description from being fully precise. To strengthen it, report only what the diagram shows and check each figure and process detail against the visual.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.0

The response is organised effectively into an introduction, a concise overview, and a chronological description. Sequencing expressions such as “In the beginning,” “Subsequently,” and “In the last step” make the process easy to follow, while the stages are presented in the correct general order. The progression is clear throughout, and the reader can understand how the output of one stage becomes the input to the next. Some linking is a little formulaic because nearly every stage is introduced with a numbered transition. You could make cohesion more flexible by linking stages through their products—for example, “The resulting juice is then filtered”—and by varying sentence openings while retaining the clear sequence.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use a relevant range of process vocabulary, including “harvested,” “limestone filter,” “evaporator,” “centrifuge,” and “sugar crystals,” which communicates the main stages clearly. There are also some imprecise or unnatural choices: “farmers themselves” is less exact than “by hand,” “crusher machine” is awkward, and “placed openly” does not naturally describe drying. “Consumable” is also an unnecessary interpretation of the final product. Spelling errors in “seperates” and “seperated” reduce accuracy. Aim for precise, conventional process collocations and check spelling; this will make the description sound more controlled without requiring more elaborate vocabulary.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.5

You use both simple and complex forms, including the passive construction “are harvested” and the relative clause in “the centrifuge that rotates and separates…”. Most sentences communicate the sequence successfully, and the overall meaning remains clear. Some grammatical patterns are less controlled: “sugar canes take the time duration of 12-14 months to grow” is an awkward construction, and “the juice goes through the limestone filter for the purification” uses an unnecessary article and noun form. “In the fifth step” is also more natural than “In fifth step.” Work on concise time expressions (“take 12–18 months to mature”) and article use, while continuing to use passive forms appropriately for a process description.

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