Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-08-19

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The diagram below shows the process for recycling plastic bottles.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

How plastic bottles are recycled

Student answer (Band 6.0)

The provided diagram presents how plastic bottles are recycled.

Overall, it can be seen that there are several stages in the process of recycling plastic bottles. Although the main stages are manual and mechanical stages, starting from disposing plastic containers into a waste bin and ending with making fabrics and plastic containers.

Firstly, the manual stage starts from disposing waste materials into the waste bin. Secondly, a waste truck transports them to the recycling center, where it is sorted by hand. After that, they bottles are compressed into blocks .

Meanwhile, in the mechanical stage, the blocks are crushed and then poured inside a bowl, in order to wash them. The crushed blocks are further grinded by a machine which produces plastic pellets. Additionally, these plastic pellets are heated to form raw materials. These raw materials are packaged and stored to produce the end products which are fabrics, pencils, plastic bottles and plates.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response covers all stages of the process, from collection to the production of end products. The overview is clear and identifies the main stages effectively. However, the description of the process could be more precise. For instance, the distinction between manual and mechanical stages is mentioned but not fully integrated into the flow of the description. While the main features are reported, the response lacks a more detailed comparison or a more sophisticated synthesis of the stages. The information is accurate, but the development of the process steps could be more detailed to fully meet the requirements for a higher band.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The essay is organized logically, following the chronological order of the recycling process. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate the manual and mechanical stages. Cohesive devices such as 'Firstly', 'Secondly', 'After that', and 'Meanwhile' are used to guide the reader through the steps. However, some transitions feel slightly mechanical, and the referencing is occasionally imprecise, such as 'they bottles' (a grammatical error that also affects cohesion). Overall, the progression of ideas is clear, and the structure is coherent enough to follow the process without difficulty.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, using process-specific terms like 'compressed', 'crushed', 'grinded', and 'pellets'. However, there are some inaccuracies in word choice and form, such as 'grinded' (should be 'ground') and the awkward phrasing 'they bottles'. The range is sufficient to describe the process, but it lacks the sophistication and precision required for higher bands. The repetition of basic verbs like 'starts' and 'produces' limits the lexical variety. Improving the precision of technical terms and avoiding minor word-form errors would enhance the score.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The response uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are several grammatical errors that persist. Examples include 'they bottles are compressed' (incorrect pronoun usage), 'grinded' (incorrect past participle), and 'poured inside a bowl, in order to wash them' (slightly awkward phrasing). Punctuation is generally acceptable, but the sentence structure could be more varied to demonstrate better control. Most errors do not impede communication, but they are frequent enough to prevent a higher score in this criterion.

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