Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-09-19
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 given map illustrates the difference between how the Islip town looks now and after its development.
Overall, the main road, and the shops. Some new facilities and new housing are also planned.
Firstly, Dual carriageway will be contructed in form of loop around the whole town the with one connecting road from the west and other from the east. Existing main raod will be converted to pedestrians path. Shops on the north of the main road will be elevated and new facilities like bus station, shopping center, car park and new housing with a link road will be constructed while the shops on the south of main road will remain same. Housing in the south of main road will be shifted slightly to west to have some room for new housing and the park in the south of main road will remain same. Outside of the dual loop school and housing will remain same at their existing place.
In conclusion, the plan to to make the Islip town more compact and facilitable.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The student attempts to cover the main features of the maps, noting the construction of the dual carriageway loop, the pedestrianisation of the main road, and the replacement of northern shops with a bus station, shopping centre, and car park. However, the overview is incomplete and fragmented, consisting of a broken sentence ('Overall, the main road, and the shops.'). Additionally, there are some inaccuracies in reporting spatial relationships, such as claiming the shops on the south of the main road will remain the same while later mentioning adjustments to housing and the park. This places the response in Band 6, as it addresses the task and highlights relevant information, but the lack of a fully realized overview and minor under-development of some details prevent a higher score.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The response is organized into an introduction, a body paragraph, and a brief concluding sentence, but the overall structure feels disjointed due to the incomplete overview and abrupt transitions. Cohesive devices are used simply (e.g., 'Firstly', 'In conclusion'), and referencing is sometimes imprecise, such as repetitive phrasing like 'south of main road' multiple times in close proximity. Paragraphing is attempted, but the grouping of information could be more logical to ensure a smoother progression of ideas. This fits the Band 6 descriptor, where there is a coherent overall arrangement, but cohesion is sometimes mechanical or faulty.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The student demonstrates an adequate vocabulary for the task, successfully utilizing terms related to urban development such as 'dual carriageway', 'pedestrians path', 'bus station', and 'shopping center'. However, there are notable word choice and spelling errors, such as 'contructed' instead of constructed, 'raod' instead of road, and the awkward phrasing 'facilitable'. Less common lexical items are attempted but lack precision and natural collocation. These limitations in lexical range and accuracy place the response firmly in the Band 6 category.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The student uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, such as 'Existing main raod will be converted to pedestrians path' and relative clauses like 'new housing with a link road will be constructed'. However, grammatical errors are frequent throughout the text, including missing articles ('in form of loop', 'to pedestrians path', 'outside of dual loop school'), capitalization errors, and spelling slips. While these errors do not completely impede communication, they disrupt the flow and prevent the writing from achieving the error-free control required for higher bands, making a Band 5.5 appropriate.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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