Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-09-26
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 plans represents the site of an airport now and how it will look after redevelopment next year.
Overall, numbers of gates are will increase. both departments will have new facilities ATM, car hire, bag drop and cafe. departures and arrivals entrance will be double and new shops will be built on north side of Security passport control.
Southwest airport have 8 gates with short walk way. It have two departments; arrivals at passport control custom , Departures at security passport control for checking and have cafe for chit-chat.
Southwest airport proposed redevelopment will total 18 gates which surrounding in Y shape, walk way will be replace by sky train. Departments will added new facilities; arrivals and departures will have double gates, passport control customs will have new cafe, car hire and ATM. security passport control will have new bag drop facilities. New shops will built on north side of security passport control.
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 summarise the main features of the airport plans before and after redevelopment, noting the increase in gates to 18, the addition of a sky train, and new facilities such as car hire, bag drop, and shops. However, there are notable inaccuracies and confusions in the reporting of spatial relationships and features. For example, the student states that departures and arrivals entrances will be double and that passport control customs will have a new café, whereas the visual data shows specific locations for these additions (such as the café and ATM in arrivals and car hire on the far right). The overview is simplistic and contains minor misinterpretations, placing the response firmly at Band 5.0.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0
The text is organised into four paragraphs, attempting an introduction, an overview, and separate body paragraphs for the 'now' and 'after' plans. However, the logical progression is hindered by poor paragraphing choices and abrupt transitions. Cohesive devices are minimal and sometimes inaccurate or repetitive, such as the frequent reuse of basic sentence structures ('Southwest airport have...', 'Southwest airport proposed redevelopment...'). Paragraphing fails to clearly separate distinct ideas, and referencing between sentences is weak, leading to a choppy reading experience that aligns with Band 5.0 descriptors.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.0
The vocabulary used is basic and repetitive, frequently relying on direct lifts from the prompt ('airport', 'gates', 'departures', 'arrivals', 'shops', 'security', 'passport control'). There are noticeable word choice and collocation errors, such as 'numbers of gates are will increase', 'departments' used instead of 'terminal areas', and 'surrounding in Y shape'. Less common lexical items are attempted but with frequent inaccuracy ('walk way will be replace by sky train'). While communication is generally maintained despite the limitations, the range is restricted, fitting Band 5.0.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0
The response displays a very limited range of grammatical structures. Simple sentences predominate, and attempts at more complex constructions are frequently faulty, characterised by missing auxiliary verbs, incorrect verb forms, and subject-verb agreement issues (e.g., 'The plans represents', 'gates are will increase', 'It have two departments', 'New shops will built'). Punctuation and capitalization errors are also present. Grammatical errors occur with high frequency and occasionally cause difficulty for the reader, matching the criteria for Band 5.0.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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