Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-09-16
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 picture shows the expansion plan for the Sothwest airport. The airport at the present have limited facilities for the passengers. It has limited only eight gates, a walkway, check-in and a cafe only on for the departing passegers. Moreover, the southwest airpost at the present is more prone to be crowded.
According to the redevelopment plan, next year, the southwest airport will be transformed. There will be two doors for both arriving and departing passangersso there wont be any crowd or long waiting lines during the peak hours. A cafe on each side so the travelers can have lunch or a cup of coffee in a cozy place. An ATM will also be installed for the arriving passangers so they can easily get cash or they can exchange currency if they are travelling from abroad. A car hire service will also be available for arriving passangers.
Some shops will be opened for the departing passangersso they can have some gifts for their families and friends. A chek-in counter and Bag drop service will also be available for these passangers.
Moreover, the gates will also be increased in order to accomodate more flights at a time. A sky train will be deployed which will drop the passangers to their respective gates and vice versa.
All these changes will benefit the passangers travelling from and to the southwest airport and will contribute to safe and comfortable travel for all the people.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0
The student attempts to summarise the main features of the airport plans, mentioning the addition of gates, a sky train, shops, and changes to check-in and arrivals. However, the response falls short of a well-developed Academic Task 1 overview. It adopts an inappropriate informal, speculative tone by discussing subjective matters such as travellers having lunch in a 'cozy place' or buying gifts for families. Furthermore, the description contains inaccuracies regarding the current layout, such as stating there is a café 'only on for the departing passengers' when the visual data shows it clearly. The overview lacks a concise summary of the major structural transformations shown in the maps, such as the Y-shaped extension of the concourse.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The response is organised into multiple paragraphs, separating the present layout from the future redevelopment and specific amenities like shops, transport, and general benefits. However, paragraphing is somewhat basic and the progression of information feels disjointed at times. Cohesive devices are minimal and occasionally repetitive or misused, such as starting multiple sentences with 'Moreover' ('Moreover, the southwest airpost...', 'Moreover, the gates will also be increased...'). Referencing is also weak in places, leading to choppy sentences that lack smooth transitions between the spatial features of the airport map.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.0
The vocabulary used is generally basic and repetitive ('limited', 'passengers', 'cafe', 'arriving'). There are numerous spelling mistakes throughout the text, including 'Sothwest' for Southwest, 'airpost' for airport, 'passangers' (repeatedly misspelled), and 'chek-in'. The writer attempts some less common vocabulary such as 'redevelopment plan', 'accommodate', and 'deployed', but these are undermined by frequent lexical inaccuracies and spelling errors. While the terms are mostly comprehensible, the lexical range is restricted and shows limited flexibility.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The response includes a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, but control over grammar and punctuation is inconsistent. There are several noticeable grammatical errors, such as 'The airport at the present have limited facilities' (subject-verb agreement), 'It has limited only eight gates' (awkward phrasing), and sentence fragments like 'A cafe on each side so the travelers can have lunch...' which lack a main verb. Punctuation is also faulty, with missing commas and fused clauses. While simple sentences are generally understandable, attempts at complexity often introduce errors that distract the reader.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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