Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-10-03

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 6.0)

The diagrams compare the layout of an airport that how it looks at present and after a development process in the next year.

In general, it is evident that the site will undergo considerable transformations. The number of service centers and gates in the northern zone will be increased, while the security passport control and passport control customs area remains in their previous locations with a division, which also differentiates the depatures and arrivals sites.

In the north site of the airport the number of gates will be rose from four to eighteen with an addition of sky train in the centre and reshaped the walkway from a rectangular to a Y shape. At the western site of the area where the security passport control has located, the cafe will be tranformed to this area and relocate into two new areas: one just beside the departures gate and another at the eastern area, just near the passport control customs.

A bag drop will be introduced at the site where the cafe have situated at first. At the region of arrivals gate there will be a car hire zone at the right corner. An ATM booth will also be established just between the cafe and car hire areas.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

The response successfully addresses all parts of the task by presenting a clear overview of the main changes and reporting key features of the airport's layout before and after development. The overview effectively highlights the major structural alterations, such as the northern zone extension and the addition of new service areas. However, some details are slightly under-developed or imprecise. For instance, the description of the gate expansion from four to eighteen and the relocation of facilities could be supported by more precise spatial relationships. The writer successfully touches upon the extension of the concourse to a Y-shape, the inclusion of a sky train, and the addition of amenities like car hire and bag drop, fulfilling the core requirements of a band six while showing glimpses of higher-level task coverage.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The report maintains a coherent overall arrangement with a logical progression of ideas from an introductory overview to specific spatial details in the northern and western zones. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate different sections of the airport. However, cohesion is at times mechanical or slightly faulty, such as in the opening sentence where the relative clause phrasing is awkward ("the layout of an airport that how it looks"). Referencing and cohesive devices like "At the north site" and "At the western site" guide the reader through the diagrams, but the transitions between sentences could flow more smoothly to reach higher band standards.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary suitable for an academic task, attempting less common terms such as "considerable transformations" and "redeveloped next year." There are, however, several word choice and spelling inaccuracies that reflect a band six level. For example, phrases like "security passport control and passport control customs area" repeat terms awkwardly, and words are occasionally misused or misspelled, such as "depatures" instead of departures, "rose" instead of rise, and "tranformed" instead of transformed. Despite these slips, meaning is generally clear and communication is not significantly impeded.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The response employs a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating an attempt to use varied structures. There are, nevertheless, noticeable errors in grammar and punctuation that place this response in the lower band. Examples include structural awkwardness in the introductory sentence ("compare the layout of an airport that how it looks"), tense inconsistencies ("the cafe have situated"), and preposition errors ("at the north site" instead of in the northern part). While these errors rarely impede communication, the frequent presence of grammatical inaccuracies prevents the writing from achieving a higher score.

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