Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-10-20

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 illustration shows us the site of an Southwest airport at this time and how it will turn after redevelopment in next year.

Overall, the now airport had fewer facilities in comparison the new airport. For instance, bag drop, ATM, sky train, shops and car hire are new adittions.

On the one hand, departures and arrivals are on the same location but the addition in doors will come in after progress 2 doors will be extended in 4 doors for enterance. Moreover, in now departure check in and cafe are seen and arrivals are empty but in the next year in departures will have cafe in the entrance door and next to it there is bag drop, on its opposite side there is a section of check in. In arrival section car hire is seen first and next to this there is a ATM and cafe.

On the other hand, security passport control and passport control customs will remain un changed. Furthermore, next to them there are no shops in departures but this is now being added in coming year. Besides this, now 1-8 gates are in airport in which people walkway but in next year 1-18 gates are seen and sky train will be used there to travel.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

You identify the main overall change: the redeveloped airport has more facilities, including shops, a sky train, an ATM, bag drop and car hire, and you compare the gate capacity increasing from 1–8 to 1–18. You also note that passport-control and customs areas remain. These relevant points support a clear response to the plans. However, some details are inaccurate or unclear: the arrivals area is not empty now, since it contains passport control and customs, and the claim that entrance doors will increase from two to four is not supported by the plan. The locations of the new facilities are also sometimes confused, particularly the café and bag drop in departures. A more precise overview and clearer reporting of the main spatial changes would provide the fuller coverage expected at the next level.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, an overview, and two body paragraphs comparing the current and future layouts. This gives the reader a broad route through the information. However, the division into “On the one hand” and “On the other hand” does not consistently group related changes, and several sentences combine multiple locations and features, making the sequence difficult to follow. For example, the sentence beginning “Moreover, in now departure…” moves between the current and future layouts without a clear boundary. Linking expressions such as “Furthermore” and “Besides this” are used, but sometimes feel mechanical rather than showing a precise relationship. Organise the details by area or by current-versus-future changes, and use clearer references to each section.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use some task-relevant vocabulary, including “redevelopment,” “facilities,” “passport control,” “gates,” and “sky train,” so the reader can identify the main subject matter. However, the range is limited and several word choices or collocations are inaccurate, which sometimes makes the layout hard to picture. Phrases such as “turn after redevelopment,” “addition in doors,” and “people walkway” are not natural ways to describe a plan. There are also noticeable spelling and word-form errors, including “adittions,” “enterance,” and “unchanged” written as two words. Aim for precise map language such as “will be converted into,” “an additional entrance,” and “passengers will use the walkway.” Check spelling carefully and avoid repeating general terms such as “section” when a specific facility name is available.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more extended sentence forms, including comparisons and clauses introduced by “while” or “but.” This shows an effort to connect information rather than relying only on short statements. However, control is uneven, and errors in sentence structure, tense, articles, and agreement often make the descriptions awkward. For example, “the now airport had fewer facilities in comparison the new airport” lacks a natural comparison structure, while “in departures will have cafe” has an incomplete construction. The opening phrase “an Southwest airport” also shows difficulty with articles. Practise reliable patterns such as “The current airport has…, whereas the redeveloped airport will have…” and “A café is located…”. More accurate sentence frames and careful proofreading would make your comparisons easier to understand.

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

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