Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-10-14

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 5.5)

The plans illustrates the exiting facilities at southwest airport and how they expected to change the redevelopment next year.

Overall , the airport is set to undergo significant expaction and modertion,with additional passenger facilities and improverd access. The main aim appears to be accomodate more travellers and make airport more convinient to use .

At present, the airport has a relitvely simple layout with check-in area, security and passport control section and limited number of gates .Passangers use to exiting entrance to acess to main terminal facilities .

Following redevelopment , the airprt axpected to offer winder range of facilities and services. The terminal area will be expanded and additional gateswill be constructed to increase passanger capacity. Furthermore , new facilities are likely to be introduced to improve the overall travel experiance . The transport arrangements may also be improved to provide easier acess to the airport.

In conclusion, the proposed redevelopment will be transform southwest airport into larger modern transport hub, offering improved faclities for passangers.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

You identify the broad direction of change: the airport will expand and gain more passenger facilities. However, the response only partially reports the plans because most details are general or speculative rather than tied to the map. For example, you mention “additional gates” but do not state that the number rises from 8 to 18 or describe the new Y-shaped concourse and central sky train. The claim that transport arrangements may improve is vague; the map specifically shows a sky train within the concourse, not improved access to the airport. Important changes such as shops, bag drop, relocated check-in, and car hire are also omitted. To strengthen the report, select and accurately compare the main spatial changes, avoiding unsupported interpretations.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The response has a clear overall arrangement: an introduction, an overview, a description of the current airport, and a paragraph about the redevelopment, followed by a conclusion. This makes the general progression easy to follow, and transitions such as “At present” and “Following redevelopment” help distinguish the two stages. The organisation is therefore coherent, though the body paragraphs do not develop a clear comparison of specific locations, and the conclusion largely repeats the overview. Some linking is also mechanical, with “Furthermore” introducing another broad claim rather than a precise map feature. To improve, group details by area—for example, the concourse and gates, then the terminal facilities—and use references that clearly connect each change to its original location.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use some task-relevant vocabulary, including “facilities,” “redevelopment,” “gates,” “terminal,” and “passenger capacity,” and you attempt more formal expressions such as “transport hub.” However, spelling errors are frequent and sometimes make the text harder to read: “exiting,” “expaction,” “modertion,” “accomodate,” and “experiance.” There are also inaccurate or awkward choices, such as “exiting entrance” and “winder range,” which do not communicate the intended meaning clearly. The vocabulary remains broad and general, so it does not precisely describe the map’s features. Build accuracy with common map language such as “is relocated,” “is extended,” “is situated,” and “is replaced by,” and proofread spelling carefully.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a range of sentence patterns, including an overview sentence with “Overall” and a future-focused sentence beginning “Following redevelopment.” However, grammatical control is uneven, and several errors affect clarity. For example, “The plans illustrates” has a subject–verb agreement error, while “how they expected to change” needs a passive construction such as “how they are expected to change.” In “The airport has a relitvely simple layout with check-in area,” the article is missing, and “Passengers use to exiting entrance” has an incorrect verb pattern and unclear sentence structure. The final sentence, “will be transform,” also uses the wrong verb form. Practise accurate passive forms for planned changes and check agreement, articles, and verb patterns when editing.

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