Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-09-16
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 5.5)
The diagram illustrates the reusing of plastic bottles. It is divided into nine processing steps which passes sevaral procedures.
Overall, recycling process starts from dispoing of bottles then relocate them to factory and start the cutting and compressing process unitl it become as a raw material which will be used in daily goods products.
Firstly, people through used bottles into the garbage boxes after that when these bottles are in to a junk than transfer it using garbage collecting turcks. Furthermore, recycling started when bottles were separated from the gabage truck to the desiganated boxes and sent them to the compresor section. Subcequently, when these botles reacehd to the compressor section then compress them and saped as a rectangular boxes.
The recycling process continous and put the compress bottles into the crusher where crushing machine converted into small piceces. As bottles were used and contaminated so the next process to wash crushed pieces. After that, grinding machine were used to convert crush pieses into plastic pellets which were after heated and finally shaped as raw meterial. That raw metrial used into end product likewise, pencils and other plastic items.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 6.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0
The student successfully identifies the main purpose of the diagram, which illustrates the nine-step closed-loop process of recycling plastic bottles. The overview captures the main stages from disposal to the creation of raw materials and end products. However, there are some minor mechanical inaccuracies in reporting the sequence, such as saying people throw bottles into 'garbage boxes' and transfer them to a junk before trucks collect them. While all parts of the task are addressed and the key features are outlined, the development of ideas is slightly hindered by imprecise descriptions of the visual data. Overall, the response fulfills the requirements of Task Achievement at a Band 6.0 level.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The response is arranged into a logical overall structure consisting of an introduction, an overview, and body paragraphs that follow the chronological order of the diagram. Cohesive devices such as 'Firstly', 'after that', 'Furthermore', and 'Subcequently' are used to signal the progression of steps, although some transitions feel somewhat mechanical or repetitive. Paragraphing is attempted, but the grouping of sentences could be improved for better logical flow. Referencing is occasionally unclear, such as pronoun use referring back to steps or objects. Consequently, the performance aligns best with the Band 5.5 descriptor.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.0
The vocabulary used is adequate for the task, allowing the student to describe common actions like crushing, washing, and heating pellets. However, there are frequent spelling errors (e.g., 'sevaral', 'dispoing', 'through', 'turcks', 'gabage', 'desiganated', 'compresor', 'Subcequently', 'botles', 'reacehd', 'saped', 'continous', 'compress', 'piceces', 'pieses', 'meterial') and word-form inaccuracies. Less common lexical items are attempted but often marred by incorrect spelling or collocation, which restricts the score to Band 5.0.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but control over grammar and punctuation is weak throughout. There are frequent errors in verb tenses, subject-verb agreement, and sentence boundaries (e.g., run-on sentences and comma splices such as 'The recycling process continous and put the compress bottles into the crusher where crushing machine converted into small piceces'). Articles and prepositions are also frequently misused or omitted. These persistent grammatical inaccuracies can cause some difficulty for the reader, placing the response firmly at Band 5.0.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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