Band 7.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-09-04

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 7.5)

The process diagram illustrates how plastic bottles are recycled.

Overall, the process consists of nine main stages, beginning with the separation of recyclable waste from general waste and culminating in the manufacture of new product from recycled plastic.

Initially, recyclable plastic bottles are collected from the household waste by a municipal garbage-collection vehicle. They are subsequently transported to a recycling centre, where a designated employee separates plastic bottles from other recyclable materials, such as glass jars or paper boxes. The sorted bottles are then compressed into blocks using a specialised machine. These blocks are subsequently crushed into tiny particles by rotating wheels. The particles are then placed in a container filled with clean water, where they are washed to remove any remaining dirt.

At the next stage, the washed particles are transferred to a specialised machine, where they are processed into plastic pellets. The resulting pallets are subsequently heated on a hot surface to form the raw material, which is then used to manufacture a range of new plastic products, including water bottles, containers, pens, shirts and poly bags.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.5

The response effectively summarizes the recycling process. You have clearly identified the main stages, from collection to the final manufacturing of products. The overview is concise and provides a good summary of the entire cycle. You have successfully selected the key features of the diagram and presented them in a logical, chronological order. To reach a higher band, ensure that you explicitly mention the input and output materials more clearly in the overview, and perhaps highlight the transformation aspect (e.g., from waste to raw material) more prominently. Overall, the task is well-addressed with a clear focus on the process steps.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 8.0

The essay is well-organized with a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and a logical progression of ideas. You have used a variety of cohesive devices such as 'initially', 'subsequently', 'at the next stage', and 'the resulting' to guide the reader through the process. The paragraphing is appropriate, separating the initial collection and sorting from the later processing stages. The flow is smooth and easy to follow. To improve further, ensure that the transition between the washing stage and the pelletizing stage is even more seamless, perhaps by using more sophisticated linking phrases to connect the physical transformation of the plastic.

Lexical Resource — Band 7.0

You have used a good range of vocabulary appropriate for a process description, such as 'municipal', 'compressed', 'rotating wheels', and 'raw material'. The terminology is accurate and fits the context well. There is a minor error where you used 'pallets' instead of 'pellets' in the final paragraph, which is a spelling/word-choice slip. To achieve a higher band, try to incorporate more precise technical collocations or slightly more sophisticated synonyms for common verbs like 'transferred' or 'placed' to demonstrate a wider, more flexible range of vocabulary.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 7.5

The grammar is generally accurate, and you have successfully used a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. The passive voice is used appropriately throughout the description, which is essential for process writing (e.g., 'bottles are collected', 'particles are transferred'). There are very few errors, and those present do not impede communication. To reach the highest band, ensure that you maintain consistent control over pluralization and spelling, as seen in the 'pallets/pellets' confusion. Your sentence construction is varied and demonstrates good control over complex structures, which is a strength of your writing.

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

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.