Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-09-12
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 5.5)
The plan illustrates the current southwest airport and the future development of southwest airport with various amenities and expansions.
Overall, the present airport has many amenities like Cafe and Walkway, while in the redevelopment plan the airport will have the same amenities as present airport. In addition, the airport redevelopment will add some other amenities like ATM, Sky train, shops and Gates. The present airport was small, whereas the future redevelopment plan will have a bigger expansion of airport.
To begin with, the current southwest airport have a walkway on the front, later on it will be replaced with sky train. At present, the airport have one departure and arrival gate, in future these will be expanded into two departure and two arrival entrances. The shop will be built near the sky train entrance and ATM, care hires will be built in the arrival block and bag drops will be established in the new development plan.
The gates in current airport has only 8. However, these gates will be increased to 18 in the next year. The cafe is departure was situated at right side near passport control, in future the airport will be changed to the bottom left near the departure entrance and the check-in will be placed in the right corner of the departure block and finally, the security, passport control and customs will remain in the same spot after redevelopment.
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 addresses all parts of the task by comparing the current layout of Southwest Airport with the proposed redevelopment plans for next year. An overview is provided, highlighting key changes such as the expansion of gates, the introduction of a sky train, and the addition of new amenities like ATMs and bag drops. Major features are reported with relevant comparisons, such as noting that the number of gates will increase from 8 to 18. However, there are some minor inaccuracies or slight confusion in describing specific locations, such as stating that the cafe in departure was situated at the right side and will be changed to the bottom left. Overall, the response covers the main features well, earning a solid Band 6.5.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The response is organized into four paragraphs, including an introduction, an overview, and two body paragraphs detailing specific spatial changes. There is a clear overall progression from general observations to specific facility modifications. Cohesive devices such as 'To begin with', 'at present', 'later on', and 'finally' are used to signal chronological or spatial relationships, though some referencing and transitions feel slightly mechanical (e.g., repeating 'the present airport' and 'in future'). Paragraphing is functional, and the relationship between ideas is generally clear, justifying a Band 6.0.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary suitable for describing maps and plans, including terms such as 'amenities', 'redevelopment', 'expansion', 'passport control', and 'bag drops'. However, there are noticeable word choice and collocation errors, such as 'care hires' instead of 'car hire', 'the cafe is departure was situated', and repetitive use of basic vocabulary phrases like 'present airport' and 'future redevelopment plan'. While these errors do not impede communication, they restrict the lexical score to a Band 6.0.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, incorporating clauses like 'while in the redevelopment plan the airport will have...' and 'whereas the future redevelopment plan will have...'. However, there are frequent grammatical errors involving subject-verb agreement (e.g., 'the current southwest airport have', 'the airport have one departure'), articles (e.g., 'the shop will be built', 'in future'), and preposition use. Although these errors do not prevent the reader from understanding the main points, they indicate control limited primarily to simple sentences with occasional errors in complex forms, corresponding to a Band 5.5.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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