Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-09-22
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 5.5)
The diagram illustrates the process of making electricity from geothermal energy.
Overall, cold water is pumped underground, then it comes into condenser as a steam and with the help of steam the turbine is rotated that helps to produce electricity.
First cold water has been pumped down underneath the earth around 4.5 km in depth, which is then collected in natural injection well. Next the water flows throughout hot rocks to the production well, in this particular process cold water is converted into hot water with the help of natural underground heat.Then in the next step that hot water is changes into steam which is collected in condenser.
The steam which is collected is slowly remove from the condenser with the help of short passage which help Turbine to start rotating and with the help of natural phenomenon of steam flow the electricity is produced.Now the electricity which is produce by turbine is being stored in generator and can be used whenever required.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 6.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0
The student successfully covers all key stages of the geothermal energy production process, from pumping cold water 4.5 km underground to the generation of electricity. The overview accurately captures the main steps, and the progression is generally grounded in the provided diagram. However, there are minor mechanical inaccuracies in reporting the sequence, such as stating cold water is collected in a 'natural injection well' (the injection well is man-made) and slight confusion regarding how the condenser and turbine interact. Despite these minor misreadings of the diagram's labels, all parts of the task are addressed, and the core information is reported clearly, warranting a solid Band 6.5 score.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The response demonstrates a logical overall arrangement, moving step-by-step through the diagram from cold water injection to electricity generation. Cohesive devices such as 'First', 'Next', and 'Then' are used to structure the process, though linking is occasionally mechanical or repetitive. Paragraphing is minimal, with the body of the process compressed into a single dense block after the introduction. This lack of clear paragraph breaks to separate the underground phase from the surface generation phase hinders logical flow. Referencing is generally clear, but the overall structural organization keeps this criterion at Band 6.0.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully incorporating process-specific terms such as 'geothermal energy', 'condenser', 'turbine', 'generator', and 'injection well'. There are, however, several awkward collocations and word-choice errors, such as 'making electricity' instead of 'generating electricity', 'comes into condenser as a steam' (omitting articles), and 'is changes into steam'. Spelling is generally accurate, but lexical control lacks the precision and flexibility required for higher bands. Communication is not impeded, supporting a Band 6.0 rating.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, including relative clauses ('which is then collected') and participial phrases ('helping Turbine to start rotating'). However, grammatical accuracy is inconsistent. There are frequent errors in verb forms, voice, and articles, such as 'cold water has been pumped' (present perfect passive used inappropriately for a timeless process), 'is changes into' (incorrect passive morphology), and missing articles before singular countable nouns like 'condenser' and 'turbine'. Punctuation and run-on tendencies also detract from the quality, placing this performance at Band 5.5.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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