Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-10-05

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 following diagram illustrates the proces of genrating electricity from geathermal energy.

Overall, we can see that, to produce electricity, water is stored in a tank. Which is further pumbed down by injection well and then the water is heated and pumped up through production well. And stored in a condenser and the steam of hot water is used to power the turbine. Then the generator is used which is powered by turbines and it produce electricity.

Firstly, cold water is collected in a tank. A 4.5 km well is digged under the tank. The cold water is pumped down through the injection well. The cold is passed through geothermal zone, where it is heated by the Earth's internal heat. However, the hot water is sent up to the condenser through the production well.

Now, the hot water is held in a condenser tank, where the steam of hot water will be used for powering the turbine. Finally, the turbine is powered by the steam and is used to drive the generator which subsequently produces electricity. The electricity is then transmitted through power lines to electricity tower before distributed to household and other areas across the city.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

The response successfully addresses all parts of the task by outlining the main stages of the geothermal energy process from cold water storage to electricity generation, including key details such as the 4.5 km depth and the underground geothermal zone. An overview is present at the beginning, summarizing the main progression. However, certain aspects are slightly under-developed or contain minor inaccuracies compared to the diagram, such as stating that water is stored in a condenser rather than explaining the condenser's role in handling the returned fluid, and introducing unrepresented details in the final sentence regarding households and city areas. These features keep the response at the solid mid-level, showing elements of fully covering all parts while retaining some minor omissions and uneven development of ideas.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The text exhibits a coherent overall arrangement with a clear logical progression from the initial water collection through the underground cycle to the final electricity transmission. Paragraphing is used adequately to separate the introduction, the overview, and the sequential steps of the process. Cohesive devices are employed, such as 'Firstly', 'Now', and 'Finally', to guide the reader through the stages. However, referencing and cohesion can occasionally feel somewhat mechanical or repetitive, and sentence joining is sometimes awkward, as seen with sentence fragments like 'Which is further pumbed down...'. These characteristics reflect a clear logical structure with mechanical cohesive traits typical of this level, showing the potential for more flexible referencing found in higher bands.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary suitable for describing a technical process, incorporating terms like 'geothermal energy', 'injection well', 'condenser', and 'transmission'. There are successful attempts to use less common vocabulary, but these are accompanied by several spelling and word-choice errors, such as 'proces', 'genrating', 'geathermal', and 'pumbed', along with the collocation 'well is digged'. Fortunately, these lexical inaccuracies do not impede communication, and the meaning remains clear throughout. To achieve a higher band, the vocabulary range needs to be wider and more precise, accompanied by a higher degree of spelling accuracy and more natural lexical collocations when discussing scientific processes.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The writing demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, attempting relative clauses and passive constructions such as 'water is stored' and 'is heated and pumped up'. There are several grammatical errors in verb forms, prepositions, and sentence boundaries, including fragments ('Which is further pumbed down...'), incorrect passive usage ('the hot water is sent up'), and missing articles. These errors occur regularly alongside error-free sentences, but they rarely impede communication. The control over complex sentence structures is still developing, which is characteristic of this band level, where frequent simple structures and occasional structural flaws persist.

See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.