Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-10-13

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 illustration of map compared the look of current Islip town and how it will look after the development.

Overall, shops in the north side of the town get replaced by several other facilities following by bus station, shopping centre, car park and new housing in new plan. Moreover, new circular vehicle path was planned for easy access to all places.

The current Islip town centre had one main road from west to east for all purpose but in new design this road designated only for pedestrians use. Although, shops located in south side of the road remained same, a new additional house added on same side in new plan.

In improved plan, shops and countryside area , which was located in north side of the city ,was replaced by bus station, shopping centre, car park and with a new house. in original town centre had only two additional road ,connected with school and park , but in developed plan their were a round dual carriageway which linked almost all facilities in one road .

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

You identify the main transformation: the northern shops are replaced by a bus station, shopping centre and car park, while the central road becomes pedestrian-only and a dual carriageway is introduced. Your overview also recognises the new housing and improved access, so the key changes are addressed. Some details, however, are unclear or inaccurate: the countryside is not described as being replaced, and the new housing is not simply “a new house”; there are new housing areas in the northeast and south-central area. The southern park is reduced, and the school and some housing remain outside the carriageway, but these useful comparisons are omitted. This covers the task well overall, though some features are less fully and precisely reported than others.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

The response has a recognisable structure, with an introduction, an overview and two detail paragraphs, and it moves from the current map to the proposed plan. However, progression within the paragraphs is not always clear: the final paragraph repeats the northern facilities already listed in the overview, while the southern changes receive little attention. Linking words such as “Moreover” and “Although” are attempted, but “Although” does not introduce a complete contrast in “Although, shops located… remained same.” Some references, including “this road” and “their,” are also unclear. Grouping the changes by location and using more precise links between current and planned features would make the organisation easier to follow.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of map-related vocabulary, including “designated,” “facilities,” “circular vehicle path” and “dual carriageway,” and the reader can generally understand the intended changes. There are also attempts to vary wording, such as “development,” “new design” and “developed plan.” However, several choices are imprecise or unnatural: “for all purpose,” “new additional house,” and “linked almost all facilities in one road” do not express the map features clearly. “Circular vehicle path” is less accurate than describing a loop or ring road, and “new house” understates the labelled new housing areas. More precise collocations and consistent map terminology would improve clarity while retaining your useful range.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentence forms, including a contrast with “Although” and a relative clause beginning “which was located.” However, errors in sentence construction and grammatical control are frequent enough to make some relationships difficult to follow. For example, “The illustration of map compared the look…” has an unclear subject and verb pattern, while “Although, shops… remained same” is not a complete, correctly formed contrast. There are also tense and agreement problems in “a new additional house added” and “their were a round dual carriageway.” Articles and punctuation are inconsistent, as in “in new plan” and the lower-case sentence beginning “in original town centre.” Check each sentence for a clear subject and finite verb, and use past and future forms consistently.

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