Band 4.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 4.0 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-09-01

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 4.0)

when we throw the plastic bottles in the dustbin, we not think it is not recycleable we throw them because these are dirty things, but we dont know the workers come in the morning and clean the big dustbin and threw the garbage in the car. when they pickup the plastic bottles they come in the recycling centre, and remove the dirty bottles that are not recycleable then they make a big blocks and pull them into the crushing machine, then they they wash the crush bottles in the water and wash them, then the workers threw the bottles in the machine, this process producing plastic peliets then the process continue then they they heat the peliets to form raw material when the raw material is successfully made they produce the end products, the bottles is going through with the very long processand up with shirts and many lil things.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 4.0

The response attempts to describe the process of recycling plastic bottles but fails to adopt an appropriate academic tone. Instead of providing a formal summary of the stages shown in the diagram, the writing is overly narrative and informal, using phrases like 'when we throw' and 'we dont know'. While the main steps are mentioned, the lack of an overview and the inclusion of irrelevant personal commentary ('we dont know the workers come in the morning') detract from the task requirements. To improve, you must focus solely on the objective description of the process stages without personal opinion or informal storytelling.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 4.0

The response is written as a single, long, run-on paragraph, which makes it difficult to follow the logical progression of the process. There is a lack of appropriate cohesive devices to link the stages of the recycling cycle. Instead of using transition words like 'subsequently', 'following this', or 'once the process is complete', the text relies on repetitive use of 'then' and 'when'. The lack of paragraphing and the absence of clear signposting mean that the reader struggles to distinguish between the different phases of the recycling operation. Using clear, distinct paragraphs for each stage would significantly improve the clarity of your writing.

Lexical Resource — Band 4.0

The vocabulary is quite limited and repetitive, relying on basic, informal language such as 'dirty things', 'big blocks', and 'lil things'. There is little attempt to use academic or technical terminology appropriate for describing a recycling process (e.g., 'sorting', 'shredding', 'granulation', 'raw material'). Several words are used incorrectly or misspelled, such as 'peliets' instead of 'pellets'. To reach a higher band, you should aim to use more precise vocabulary related to industrial processes and avoid informal, conversational phrasing. Expanding your range of synonyms and learning topic-specific collocations will help you convey information more effectively.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 4.0

The grammar is characterized by frequent errors that often impede communication. There is a lack of sentence variety, with most ideas connected by commas or 'then', resulting in run-on sentences. Punctuation is largely absent, and there are consistent errors in subject-verb agreement and tense usage, such as 'the bottles is going through' and 'this process producing'. The lack of complex sentence structures limits the range of your writing. Focusing on basic sentence construction, ensuring proper capitalization, and learning how to use conjunctions and relative clauses correctly will help you build a more solid grammatical foundation.

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