Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.0 · 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 5.0)
The plan compares the current site and how it will look after redevelopment that is planned coming year of an airport.
Overall, the site is going to see a massive change with addition of several convinent features. Boarding gate is expected to observe a complete change in layout with increase in numbers.
Currently, departures and arrivals has only one gate for each with addition of another gate for each passenger the commute is expected to be much easier and faster. With addition of cafe at both terminal and ATM and car hire at arrivals terminal the visitor will have something to do during waiting time.
Addition of shops after security passport control will allow customer to purchase something before moving towards gate for departure. Currently people are using the walkway for travelling to there gate. With addition, of sky train after development the passenger can use the feature to reach there gate much faster.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0
The response attempts to cover the main features of the current and future layouts of Southwest Airport, noting changes such as the expansion of departure and arrival gates, the addition of a cafe, ATM, car hire, and shops, as well as the introduction of a sky train. However, the overview is rather fragmented and fails to synthesise the broader spatial transformation clearly. Several details are stated simply rather than being effectively compared or structured into a cohesive summary. Furthermore, the description contains some inaccuracies regarding the map details (for instance, mentioning a cafe at both terminals when it is specified in specific areas). This places the response firmly within Band 5, as the task is addressed only partially with limited development.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0
The essay is divided into paragraphs, but the overall progression of information lacks a smooth logical flow. The introduction is brief, and the body paragraphs jump between different features without a clear organisational strategy (such as grouping by departures versus arrivals or indoor versus outdoor facilities). Cohesive devices are minimal and sometimes inaccurate or repetitive, as seen in the frequent use of phrases like 'With addition of'. Referencing is also occasionally unclear, such as 'there gate' instead of 'their gate'. While paragraphing is attempted, the overall arrangement is basic, aligning with a Band 5 descriptor for coherence and cohesion.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.0
The vocabulary used is generally adequate for conveying basic ideas about the map, but it remains limited and repetitive. Words like 'addition', 'change', and 'feature' are overused. There are noticeable word choice and spelling errors, such as 'convinent' instead of 'convenient', 'there' instead of 'their', and awkward phrasing like 'observe a complete change'. Less common vocabulary is attempted with limited success. The lexical resource is minimally adequate for the task, meeting the criteria for Band 5 due to noticeable errors that occasionally cause slight ambiguity for the reader.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The text displays a mix of simple and attempting-complex sentence structures, but control over grammar is inconsistent. There are frequent missing articles ('with addition of cafe at both terminal', 'with addition of sky train'), preposition errors, and subject-verb agreement issues ('departures and arrivals has only one gate'). Punctuation is basic, and sentences frequently contain errors that require the reader to slow down to interpret the intended meaning. Because errors are frequent throughout the response while still allowing the core message to be understood, a Band 5 score is appropriate.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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