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)

This picture illustrates a plan of the airport site now and shows how it will look after redevelopment next year.

Overall, a greater number of gates are being added, and other things like ATM, the Skytrain. These things are very helpful for people to avail things under one roof.

The present airport has similar things. It has a total of 8 gates, and in the airport, there is a walkway for people. After that, it is divided into two rooms: one is the security room, and the other is passport control and customs. While people pass security, they enter the departures area; in this room, there is a cafe for eating and also a check-in room.

After development, many gates are being added, 1-18, and a skytrain is also being added for individuals. After that, it is divided into two rooms; one of them has some shops, and also a security passport office. After passing this, people are able to check in and also for bag drop. There is a cafe and a departures area. In the other, there is the arrivals room; in this room, an ATM is placed, and also a cafe and a car hire.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You cover both the current and proposed layouts and identify the main change: the airport expands from eight gates to eighteen, with a sky train and additional facilities. You also report several relevant changes, including the café, ATM and car hire in the arrivals area. However, some details are inaccurate or unclear: the current terminal is not described as being divided into a “security room” and a passport-control room, and the redevelopment’s shops are not in a separate room. The overview also says the additions are helpful to passengers, which is an opinion rather than a key spatial change. To strengthen the response, describe the Y-shaped concourse and explain more precisely how check-in and bag drop are relocated.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

The response has a clear basic structure: an introduction, an overview, and separate paragraphs for the two stages. This helps the reader distinguish the present airport from the redevelopment. However, progression within the paragraphs is not always clear, and linking phrases such as “After that” are repeated without showing the actual spatial relationship between features. The phrase “in the other” also leaves the reader to infer which area you mean. Organise details by location—for example, describe the departures area first, then arrivals, and finally the concourse—and use precise references such as “the arrivals section” or “the central stem.” This would make the account easier to follow without relying on repetitive transitions.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use relevant task vocabulary, including “gates,” “walkway,” “check-in,” “bag drop,” “ATM” and “car hire,” so the main facilities are generally identifiable. However, the range is limited and several expressions are vague or unnatural for describing a plan. “Things” and “rooms” are repeated, while “avail things under one roof” is an awkward, informal phrase that does not clearly describe the redevelopment. “Security passport office” is also imprecise. Use more specific terms for airport areas and spatial changes, such as “terminal section,” “concourse,” “is relocated” and “is added.” More precise vocabulary would help you report the layout rather than make general comments about passenger convenience.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You use a mixture of simple sentences and some longer structures, including “While people pass security, they enter the departures area,” and the main meaning is usually understandable. However, control is uneven, particularly in sentences that combine several features. In “Overall, a greater number of gates are being added, and other things like ATM, the Skytrain,” the sentence is incomplete, and “there is a cafe and a departures area” does not clearly express the relationship between the features. The repeated “After that” constructions also make sentence patterns limited. Practise complete sentences with clear subjects and verbs, and use accurate articles and plurals—for example, “an ATM” and “eighteen gates.”

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