Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-10-04

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)

Here we have a picture about a AIRPORT, which name is SOUTHWEST AIRPORT.

In this picture, it shows that editing in the SOUTHWEST AIRPORT, like there is a adition of something, for instance, firstly the airport have just limited facilities in the shape of check-in, cafe, walkway, and gates. After the improvement, pasengers have the ability to hire a care for their help, an ATM, bag drop, sky train, and the most important thing is that the numbers of gates are increased from 8 to 18.

The area of airport aslo increased.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.5

The response only partially addresses the prompt and fails to meet the minimum word count requirement of 150 words, stopping short at 92 words. While the writer attempts to summarise the changes at Southwest Airport—noting the addition of facilities like an ATM, bag drop, sky train, and car hire, alongside the expansion of the gates from 8 to 18—the overview and main features are underdeveloped and lack detail. The selection of data is basic and misses key spatial comparisons between the two plans, resulting in a minimal response that lacks a comprehensive summary.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

There is some basic organisation in the response, but it lacks a clear overall progression. The writing opens with an informal introductory remark and transitions into a single, dense block of text rather than being structured into proper paragraphs. Cohesive devices are minimal, relying on simple connectors like 'for instance', 'firstly', and 'after the improvement', which feels somewhat mechanical. Referencing and logical flow are occasionally disjointed, meaning the information is not arranged in a fully coherent manner appropriate for an academic report.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

The vocabulary used is limited and repetitive, reflecting a basic range suitable for a minimal response. There are notable word choice and spelling errors throughout the text, such as 'adition', 'pasengers', 'care' instead of 'car', and 'aslo' instead of 'also'. The writer attempts some less common vocabulary items like 'facilities' and 'improvement', but the frequent slips and restricted variety constrain the effectiveness of the writing, occasionally causing slight difficulty for the reader.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The grammatical range is very limited, relying heavily on basic sentence structures. When the writer attempts more complex formulations, errors occur frequently. Examples of grammatical and punctuation issues include awkward phrasing in 'Here we have a picture about a AIRPORT, which name is SOUTHWEST AIRPORT' and agreement errors such as 'the airport have just limited facilities'. These frequent errors, along with awkward prepositions and punctuation habits, reflect a lack of control over sentence patterns.

See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.

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