Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-11-03

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 diagram shows the procedure that how sugar is manufactured by sugar cane. There are seven main processing parts to manufacture sugar from sugarcane. Some of these are below:

. Firstly the farmers plants the sugar cane plant.The sugar cane growing period is 12 to 18 months.

. Then the farmers harvest the sugar cane plants.

. After that the farmers crushed the sugarcane and make juice from them.

. Then the juice is send to the factories where juice is purified by using limestone filter.

. Then it puts on the heat for the evaporation and to convert it from juice to syrup

. After that the certrifuge happens it separate sugar crystals from syrup.

. Lastly the sugar crystals will put into a dry and cooling temprature to make a good sugar.

This is how the sugar cane is converted into sugar with the help of farmers and factories labour.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

You identify the seven-stage process and include the key growing period of 12 to 18 months, followed by harvesting, crushing, purification, evaporation, centrifuging, and drying. This gives the reader a basic account of how sugar is produced. However, the response only partially fulfils the task because it lacks a clear overview of the process as a whole and gives little detail about important features shown in the diagram. For example, harvesting can be done mechanically or by hand, and the limestone filter is used to purify the juice; these could be reported more precisely. The final claim that the process depends on “farmers and factories labour” is not a useful summary of the diagram. Focus on the main transformations and include a concise overview.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The stages are presented in the correct order, and sequencing expressions such as “Firstly,” “Then,” “After that,” and “Lastly” help the reader follow the process. This provides some organisation, but the response reads as a list of separate steps rather than a connected report. The repeated use of “Then” and “After that” makes cohesion mechanical, while the opening phrase “Some of these are below” does not introduce the stages clearly. The final sentence also feels detached from the process description. Grouping the stages into paragraphs—for example, growing and harvesting, then processing—and using varied links such as “Once harvested” or “Following purification” would create clearer progression and stronger connections between ideas.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant process vocabulary, including “harvest,” “crushed,” “purified,” “evaporation,” “syrup,” and “sugar crystals,” so the basic meaning is generally understandable. However, the range is limited and several word choices or forms are inaccurate or unnatural, such as “certrifuge happens,” “a dry and cooling temprature,” and “a good sugar.” These expressions make some stages less precise. Spelling errors in “certrifuge” and “temprature” also reduce accuracy. Aim to use the diagram’s technical terms directly and choose natural process collocations, such as “the juice is heated,” “the mixture is spun in a centrifuge,” and “the crystals are dried and cooled.” This would make the description clearer and more appropriate to an academic process report.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The response mainly uses short, simple sentences and attempts a few linked structures, but grammatical errors occur frequently and sometimes make the process difficult to follow. For example, “the farmers plants” has subject–verb disagreement, “the juice is send” uses an incorrect participle, and “it separate sugar crystals” lacks agreement. There are also problems with articles and sentence construction in “the procedure that how sugar is manufactured.” Passive forms are particularly useful for describing a process, but they need accurate formation: for instance, “the cane is crushed” and “the crystals are dried and cooled.” Practise consistent present-tense passive structures and check agreement, verb forms, and sentence boundaries to improve clarity.

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

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