Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-09-28
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 map show the centre of a small town called called Islip at present and the plan for its future development.
Overall, the town centre will change a lot in future. A few dual carriageway will be built around the town and added some new facilities like shopping centre, bus station and car park. However, the park and some hoising will remain.
At present, ṭhere is a main road running through the centre of the town. There are shops on both sides of this road. In the south, there are two housing areas, a school in the south-west corner and a park in the south-east. The north side og the town is countryside.
According to the plan, the main road will become a pedestrian only street. The shops on the south side will stay, but the shops on the north side will replace by bus station, shoppping centreand a car park. A new dual carriageway will be built around the town centre to improve traffic. Tye school will be removed and new housing will be built in both the north-east and south-east areas. The park will remain in the same place, while the existing housing in the south-west will not change.
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 addresses all parts of the task by covering both the present map and the planned development of Islip. A clear overview is provided in the second paragraph, highlighting major transformations such as the dual carriageway and new facilities while noting retained features like the park and some housing. Main features are reported accurately, including the conversion of the main road into a pedestrian-only street and the replacement of northern shops with a bus station, shopping centre, and car park. However, there is a factual error in the final paragraph: the student states that the school will be removed, whereas the visual data clearly shows the school remaining outside the dual carriageway loop to the south. Additionally, there are minor typos like 'hoising' and 'shoppping centreand'. Despite these inaccuracies, the overall response covers the key changes well.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5
The response is organized into four logical paragraphs, moving from an introduction to an overview, a description of the current layout, and finally the planned changes. Cohesion is generally adequate, using signposts such as 'At present', 'Overall', and 'According to the plan' to guide the reader through the comparison. However, some cohesive devices and referencing are slightly mechanical or repetitive, and paragraphing could be tighter. For instance, the transition between paragraphs could flow more naturally. Nevertheless, there is a clear overarching progression that makes the information easy to follow, placing it comfortably within the Band 6 descriptor.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.5
The student demonstrates an adequate vocabulary range for the task, successfully using topic-specific terms such as 'pedestrian only street', 'dual carriageway', 'bus station', and 'shopping centre'. However, there are noticeable spelling and word-choice errors, such as 'hoising' for housing, 'shoppping centreand' for spacing errors, and grammatical vocabulary slips like 'added some new facilities' instead of 'adding'. Attempts at less common vocabulary are somewhat limited, and these recurring inaccuracies occasionally distract the reader, though they do not completely impede communication. Overall, the lexical control is characteristic of a Band 6 performance.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5
The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, utilizing structures like 'While the existing housing in the south-west will not change' and 'A new dual carriageway will be built around the town centre to improve traffic.' However, there are frequent grammatical errors throughout the text, such as missing articles ('The map show' instead of 'The maps show', 'change a lot in future' instead of 'in the future'), subject-verb agreement issues ('A few dual carriageway will be built'), and passive voice errors ('the shops on the north side will replace by'). While these errors do not prevent comprehension, they persist across both simple and complex sentences, preventing the score from reaching a Band 6.5 or 7.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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