Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-10-21

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 Diagram below show the structure of an airport now and what it looks like after renovation next year.

Overall, the aiport after development increase in size by a lot as compared to the last one, and they also add much more new facilities like, bag drop, ATM, car hire. They relace a walkway with a sky train and also increase the area.

On the bottom area, shops were build right below the sky train, meanwhile security, passport controls, departures, and arrivals were totally remained same as before. They move the check-in area to right corner, which was the location of cafe before development, and cafe moved to below left to the departures. Bag drop area build on the recent location of check-in.

Mainly, they add a lot of new thing at bottom right side like, another cafe, ATM, and a car hire totally ight to the car hire. The most capturing change is about the gates, which were increased from 8 to 18 at the top of the airport, which covers the most area of airport.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

You identify the main overall changes: the airport becomes larger, the gate capacity rises from 8 to 18, and facilities such as a sky train, bag drop, ATM and car hire are added. You also describe several changes to check-in and the cafés, so the response addresses the task and includes relevant comparisons. This is close to a fuller, more precise account, but some details are unclear or inaccurate: shops are placed along the angled wall between departures and the concourse, not “right below the sky train,” and the car-hire area is on the far right rather than “right to the car hire.” The claim that security and passport controls remain unchanged is also too broad, as the plans show changes to the concourse and terminal layout. Clarify these locations and give a more precise overview of the Y-shaped extension.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, an overview, and two paragraphs describing changes. This helps the reader distinguish the general transformation from details in the terminal and gate areas. However, progression within paragraphs is sometimes difficult to follow because several features are joined in long lists, such as “security, passport controls, departures, and arrivals,” without explaining their relationships. “Mainly” does not clearly signal the next point, and “meanwhile” is not an effective link for the comparison that follows. Some references, including “the last one” and “they,” are vague. Group the changes by area and use clear comparisons such as “in contrast” or “whereas,” ensuring each sentence has an identifiable subject.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use some relevant map vocabulary, including “gates,” “check-in,” “bag drop,” “ATM,” and “car hire,” and you attempt to describe change with phrases such as “increase in size” and “moved.” However, word choice and spelling errors are noticeable and sometimes make the description hard to interpret. Examples include “aiport,” “relace,” “build,” and “ight”; “capturing change” is also not a natural way to describe the most significant feature. Phrases such as “a lot of new thing” and “totally remained same” are imprecise or awkward. Aim for accurate, neutral language suited to a report, and use specific spatial terms such as “along,” “adjacent to,” and “at the far right” rather than relying on general phrases.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentences, including comparisons introduced by “as compared to” and a relative clause beginning “which were increased.” However, errors in verb forms, agreement, articles and sentence construction are frequent enough to affect clarity. For example, “The Diagram below show” needs subject–verb agreement, while “the airport after development increase” needs a suitable tense and verb form. “They relace a walkway” and “cafe moved to below left” also lack accurate verb forms or grammatical phrasing. The sentence beginning “On the bottom area” combines several ideas without clear grammatical links. Practise describing plans with consistent future or passive forms, for example, “The concourse will be extended,” and check agreement and articles in each sentence.

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