Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-11-11

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The diagram below shows how geothermal energy is used to produce electricity.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

Student answer (Band 6.0)

The diagram illustrates the process of electricity production through geothermal power plant.

Overall, cold water passed through three stages to generate steam to start generator, that produces electricity and transform to electric towers for distribution. This process is linear.

To begin with, in the first stage cold water is collected in container and passed down through 4.5km long water pump. Following that, water reached the injection well from where it moved to geothermal zone covered with hot rocks. Subsequently, the hot water pumped up crossing the production well.

In the next stage, hot water collected in condenser and converted into steam that crossed the path to turbine by powering it. Then in the last stage, generator produces electricity and transfer it to the electric towers.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the main sequence—from cold water being sent underground to electricity generation—and include the key 4.5 km depth. The overview also recognises that the process is linear. However, some stages are unclear or inaccurately described: the water is not pumped down “through” a pump, and the condenser receives hot water and produces steam rather than simply collecting water. The final reference to “electric towers” is also imprecise; the diagram shows a generator connected to a transmission pylon. The response is 25 words below the required minimum, which limits the detail available to explain the stages. To strengthen the report, describe each transition accurately and add relevant details, such as water passing through the hot-rock zone before rising in the production well.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The response has a clear overall arrangement: an introduction and overview are followed by the underground stages and then the equipment at the surface. Sequencing phrases such as “To begin with,” “Following that,” and “In the next stage” help the reader follow the process, and the paragraph breaks are appropriate. This gives the report coherent progression. Some links are less precise, however: “Following that” makes it sound as though water reaches the injection well after being pumped down, when the well is the route it travels through. The overview’s reference to “three stages” also sits awkwardly beside the later “last stage.” Use transitions to show the actual order and relationship between components, rather than relying mainly on stage labels.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant process vocabulary, including “injection well,” “geothermal zone,” “production well,” “condenser,” and “turbine,” which helps identify the main components. There is also some variety in verbs such as “passed,” “crossing,” and “converted.” However, several choices are imprecise or unnatural for this diagram: “water pump” for the injection well, “electric towers” for the transmission pylon, and “crossed the path to turbine by powering it.” These expressions make some relationships harder to understand. Aim for accurate process collocations such as water being pumped down a well, heated by hot rocks, and converted into steam. Repeating the diagram’s technical labels accurately is preferable to using a less suitable substitute.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mix of simple and more complex forms, including the overview clause “that produces electricity” and the sequence “from where it moved.” The main stages remain understandable, but errors in agreement, tense, articles, and sentence construction are noticeable. For example, “cold water passed” shifts into past tense even though a process diagram is normally described in the present; “generator produces electricity and transfer it” has a subject–verb agreement error; and “through geothermal power plant” needs an article. The opening overview sentence also has an unclear structure around “to start generator.” Use the present simple consistently, check singular subjects and verbs, and build each stage as a clear sentence with an explicit subject and action.

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