Band 7.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.0 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-10-24

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 7.0)

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

Overall, it's a linear process consisting of five distinct stages, beginning with the passing of cold water into the injection and production well to finally producing the electricity using turbines and generators onto the power lines.

The process starts by pumping the cold water down the earth into the injection well, which is 4.5 km deep, and this cold water is trapped between the geothermal zone. The water reacts with the hot rocks and heats up in the production well. In the next step, the hot water is pumped up into the condensor, where steam is formed to process in later stages.

The steam is used to drive the turbine at full speed. There the generator is coupled with the turbine and powered by the high-speed mechanical energy through the turbine to produce electricity. Finally, the generated electricity is transferred to the power lines to reach our houses.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.0

You cover the main stages and provide a clear overview of the process, from pumping cold water underground to generating electricity. The 4.5 km depth is accurately reported, and the account correctly explains that hot rocks heat the water before it returns to the surface and steam drives the turbine. This gives the reader a sound understanding of the diagram. Some details, however, are over-generalised or not shown: the water is described as “trapped” between the geothermal zone, and the final claim that electricity reaches “our houses” goes beyond the diagram, which only shows transmission lines. For greater precision, describe the water’s route through the hot-rock zone and avoid adding an unillustrated destination.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.0

The response is organised into an introduction, an overview and two body paragraphs, with a clear progression through the process. Sequencing phrases such as “Overall,” “The process starts,” “In the next step” and “Finally” help the reader follow the stages. The main weakness is that the overview’s description of “five distinct stages” is not fully aligned with the later account, which includes several linked actions and components; a more precise overview could summarise the underground heating and surface electricity-generation phases. Some links between steps are also slightly abrupt, particularly “There the generator is coupled with the turbine,” where the relationship could be stated more directly. Overall, the organisation is clear, though cohesion and stage grouping could be more exact.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.5

You use a suitable range of process vocabulary, including “injection well,” “geothermal zone,” “production well,” “steam” and “turbine,” which makes the explanation specific to the diagram. There are also attempts at more technical phrasing, such as “mechanical energy.” However, some choices are imprecise or unnatural in this context: water is not “trapped” between the zone, and “the steam … to process in later stages” does not clearly express its movement or function. “Condensor” is also misspelled; the correct form is “condenser.” More accurate collocations such as “passes through the hot-rock zone” and “steam is channelled to the turbine” would improve precision and naturalness while retaining your useful technical vocabulary.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.5

You use a mix of simple and more complex structures, including the overview clause “beginning with … to finally producing” and the relative clause “where steam is formed.” Most of the sequence remains understandable, but some grammatical patterns are not controlled consistently. In the overview, “beginning with the passing … to finally producing” mixes forms; use parallel wording such as “beginning with cold water being pumped … and ending with electricity being generated.” In “The water reacts with the hot rocks and heats up in the production well,” the subject makes it sound as though the water heats itself; a passive construction would be clearer. “The steam is used to drive the turbine at full speed” is grammatical, but the following “There the generator is coupled…” has an unclear reference. More consistent passive forms would strengthen accuracy.

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