Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-08-09

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The plans below show the site of an airport now and how it will look after redevelopment next year.

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

SOUTHWEST AIRPORT

Student answer (Band 6.5)

The two maps illustrate the layout of an airport now and how it will appear next year after it's redevelopment.

Overall, the southwest airport will undergo substantial transformation with several new facilities characterized by the addition of an extra cafe, shops, an atm, car hiring and bag drop services. Apart from this, walkways would turn into sky trains along with additional gates. However, there would not be any significant changes in security, passport control and customs.

A cafe present in the north east corner of the departure area will shift to the south west corner and check-in which is currently on the left side will be replaced with bag drop service and moved towards right side of the departuring area. Furthermore, the area allocated for arrivals will have new facilities like cafe, ATM machine for withdrawing money and car hiring services. New shops will be built besides security area. Walkways will be replaced by sky trains and there will be additonal gates on either side of the sky train. However, security, passport control and customs will retained their places.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0

You have successfully identified the main features of the airport redevelopment, including the addition of new facilities and the transition from walkways to sky trains. You provided a clear overview and supported your points with specific details from the maps. To reach a higher band, ensure you consistently use precise terminology; for example, describing the 'departure area' and 'arrival area' accurately is good, but ensure all directional changes are described with absolute clarity. You covered all parts of the task well, and your comparisons between the current and future states are logical and easy to follow.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The response is logically organized, with a clear introduction, an overview, and a body paragraph detailing the changes. You use cohesive devices such as 'Apart from this', 'Furthermore', and 'However' to link your ideas effectively. The progression of information is smooth, moving from general changes to specific facility relocations. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate the overview from the detailed analysis. To improve further, ensure that referencing is always precise; for instance, ensure the reader can clearly distinguish between the 'left' and 'right' sides of the terminal as depicted in the visual data.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You demonstrate a sufficient range of vocabulary to describe the changes, using terms like 'substantial transformation', 'allocated', and 'retained'. There are some minor issues with word choice and collocation, such as 'departuring area' (should be 'departure area') and 'car hiring' (more naturally 'car rental'). While you use some less common items, there is room to incorporate more sophisticated vocabulary related to spatial changes and urban planning to demonstrate greater flexibility. Overall, your vocabulary is adequate for the task and does not impede communication.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, such as 'The two maps illustrate...' and 'A cafe present in the north east corner... will shift...'. There are some grammatical slips, such as 'it's redevelopment' (should be 'its'), 'will retained' (should be 'will retain'), and 'besides security area' (should be 'beside the security area'). While these errors are noticeable, they do not impede the reader's understanding of the information. To achieve a higher score, focus on eliminating these small errors and increasing the variety of complex sentence structures used to describe the changes.

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.