Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · 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 6.0)

The maps illustrate the information about how an airport is going to change in the future.

Overall, many alterations will take place in the development of an airport, however many places will remain at same location in both maps.

After analysing, it can be clearly seen that there will be no change in the location of security passport control and passport control customs in the west and the south. However, there is only one gate for departures and one for arrivals which will be extented to two gates in the south. In addition, there is an empty area on the left side of the map which will be filled by introduction of new shops. Moreover, ten more gates will be introduced in an airport which replaced walkway with car hire in the middle.

Moving further towards the remaining map, the area for check-in is present in the south west direction which will be moved to the place of cafe. In contrast, new area for bag drop will be established in the southern western corner. Further elaborating, a new facility for passengers will be ATM and car hire launched in the south east corner. There will be two cafes opened in the south and the east.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

You identify the broad change from the current airport to a larger redeveloped one, and you mention several relevant features, including the new shops, bag drop, ATM, car hire and cafés. The overview also recognises that some facilities remain in place. However, some key details are misread or unclear: the current plan has gates 1–8, not one departure gate and one arrival gate, and the redevelopment expands this to 18 gates, rather than adding ten. The walkway is not replaced by car hire; a central sky train is added, while car hire occupies a new area on the far right. Your account of the check-in move and the locations of the security and passport-control areas is also inaccurate. The main changes are covered, but greater precision and a clearer comparison would strengthen the response.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, an overview and two detail paragraphs. This gives the reader a general route through the information, and linking expressions such as “Overall,” “In addition” and “Moreover” help connect points. However, progression within the detail paragraphs is not always clear. “After analysing” and “Moving further towards the remaining map” are awkward transitions, and the latter does not clearly indicate which part of the plan is being described. Several ideas are also joined mechanically with “Moreover” and “Further elaborating,” while the comparison between the current and future layouts could be organised more systematically. Grouping changes by the departures area, arrivals area and concourse would make the relationships easier to follow and reduce unclear references.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of vocabulary for describing changes and locations, including “alterations,” “introduction,” “established” and “south east corner.” These choices show an attempt to use more formal language than simple everyday terms. However, some word choices and collocations are inaccurate or unnatural, such as “one gate for departures,” “extent ed to two gates” (written as “extented”), “filled by introduction,” and “car hire launched.” “Remaining map” is also not a natural way to refer to the other plan. These expressions sometimes make the intended map feature difficult to identify, even though the general topic remains understandable. Aim for precise map vocabulary such as “concourse,” “gate capacity,” “relocated” and “added,” and check spelling and natural word combinations.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mix of simple and more complex sentences, including clauses introduced by “however,” “which” and “in contrast.” Most of the message can be understood, but some grammatical errors recur. For example, “many places will remain at same location” needs an article and a plural form (“in the same locations”), while “which will be extented” has an incorrect verb form and spelling. In “the area for check-in is present … which will be moved,” the relative clause makes it unclear whether the area or the check-in facility is moving. There are also awkward sentence constructions, such as “a new facility for passengers will be ATM and car hire launched.” Use direct subject–verb sentences, maintain clear references, and check articles, agreement and verb forms when describing future changes.

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