Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-09-18
IELTS Writing Task 1 question
The maps below show the centre of a small town called Islip as it is now, and plans for its development.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.
Student answer (Band 5.5)
The two maps illustarte the outline of the centre of a small town named as islip town, How it will look after redevelopment and its present deign.
Overall, The town will undergo a significant number of changes as new car park, pedestrians only, Bus station, Dual carriageway shopping centre and new houses will be built according to plan. The placement of many things will also changed in future.
In the northwest side, new bus station will be constructed along with the addition of a new shopping centre by removing main road and replacing shops. A new pedestrains only will also established below it on the west. Shops will be shifted in the centr of town from the north side.
The outline of town will completely changed by the addition of new double carriageway.
The park and one housing remained on its previous place in the southeast side and south for both places respectively, but housing will also be extended with new housing in front of the park and on right corner of north. The location for school will not change in future after development. Also new housing cahnge it position will moved towards west next to the new housing.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The response covers the main features of both maps, noting key transformations such as the introduction of the dual carriageway, the pedestrianisation of the central street, and the replacement of shops with a bus station, shopping centre, and car park. An overview is attempted in the second paragraph, outlining general changes. However, some descriptions are slightly imprecise or confused, such as stating that 'shops will be shifted in the centre of town' when only the southern strip remains and the northern shops are replaced. Additionally, details regarding the school and park are somewhat convoluted. The response satisfies the basic requirements of Task 1 by reporting key comparisons and features, earning a Band 6.0.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The response is arranged into four paragraphs, beginning with an introduction, followed by an overview, body details, and a concluding description. While logical organisation is attempted, the progression within paragraphs is occasionally hampered by awkward referencing and phrasing (e.g., 'placement of many things will also changed'). Cohesive devices are basic and sometimes mechanical or imprecise. Paragraphing is used, but the overall flow feels disjointed in places due to sentence-level structural issues. This places the response firmly at Band 5.5.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.0
The student attempts a range of task-specific vocabulary related to town planning, such as 'redevelopment', 'pedestrians only', 'dual carriageway', and 'bus station'. However, there are numerous lexical and spelling errors throughout the text, including 'illustarte', 'deign', 'changed' instead of 'change', 'cahnge', and non-standard collocations like 'double carriageway'. While the vocabulary is adequate to convey the general message, these recurrent errors and limited precision prevent the score from reaching Band 6.0. Therefore, a Band 5.0 is appropriate.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The text displays a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but control over grammar is weak. There are frequent grammatical errors, such as subject-verb agreement issues ('the park and one housing remained... but housing will also be extended'), tense inconsistencies ('How it will look... and its present deign'), and missing prepositions or articles. Punctuation and capitalisation errors also appear frequently (e.g., 'islip town', 'Bus station', 'pedestrains only'). These errors frequently distract the reader and constrain the grammatical range, justifying a Band 5.0.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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