Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-09-17
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 given proces chart illustrates the information regarding how plastic bottles was recycled.
Overall, it is clear that it contains multiples-steps starting with sorting in the centre leading into raw material for producing products.
To start with, whrn people use bottles they put the waste into a recycling bin. After that, a truck transefer that waste into a recycling center and there the bottles are sorted in bin by workers. Then which bottles are good are compressed into big blocks of waste. The blocked are put in a crushing machine where the blocks are converted into crushed material.
Moving towards further details, the crushed material is put into a big box. Then it is washed by water and put into a machine where the producation of pellets start heat. The raw material is used for producing diffrent products such as clothes, pencial, bags and other plastic productes like bottles and boxes.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The student addresses the main parts of the task by outlining the nine stages of the plastic bottle recycling process, starting from consumer disposal and ending with the production of new end products. An overview is provided, stating that it is a multi-step process beginning with sorting and leading to raw materials. However, some stages described lack precise alignment with the visual data; for example, the text mentions 'whrn people use bottles they put the waste into a recycling bin' and generalises steps like 'which bottles are good are compressed'. While the overall progression is captured, the development of ideas is slightly limited by minor misinterpretations of specific visual cues. Overall, the response meets the basic requirements of Task 1 for a Band 5.5 or 6.0, as it covers the main features.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The response has a coherent overall arrangement, divided into introduction, overview, and body paragraphs that follow the chronological flow of the diagram. Cohesive devices such as 'To start with', 'After that', and 'Moving towards further details' are used to signal progression. However, referencing is sometimes imprecise, and paragraphing is rather basic. The flow is occasionally disrupted by mechanical transitions and awkward phrasing, such as 'Then which bottles are good are compressed'. These issues place the response firmly at Band 5.5.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.0
The student uses an adequate vocabulary range for the task, successfully incorporating terms such as 'recycling bin', 'recycling center', 'crushing machine', and 'raw material'. However, there are noticeable spelling and word-choice errors throughout the text, including 'proces', 'multiples-steps', 'whrn', 'transefer', 'producation', 'diffrent', 'pencial', and 'productes'. These lexical inaccuracies and spelling slips reduce the overall precision and occasionally cause minor strain for the reader, fitting the Band 5.0 descriptor.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, such as 'The given proces chart illustrates the information regarding how plastic bottles was recycled.' and 'After that, a truck transefer that waste into a recycling center...'. There are frequent grammatical and mechanical errors, including subject-verb agreement issues ('how plastic bottles was recycled', 'The blocked are put'), missing articles, and awkward clause structures ('where the producation of pellets start heat'). While meaning is generally conveyed, the frequency of errors places this performance at Band 5.0.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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