Band 4.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 4.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-09-19

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 4.5)

The diagram, illustrates the process how plastic bottles are recycled.

Overall, the most striking trend shows at the end after they recycled there are many new products are furnished.

First step of recycling of plastic bottles sanitation worker are collect the plastic bottles from garbage. Then go to the second step recycling center sorting through on garbage truck then here many of workers are collect bottles in separate box. Furthermore, in third step, compressing all bottles into a blocks. Fourthly, crushing these blocks of bottles into machine then washing a crushed material. Fifthly, producing plastic pellets into the machine and then sixty step go to this material into heating machine form raw material and then raw material collect in bags and then processing end products. Lastly this raw material is ready for furnished a new product such as, bottles, pencil, shirts, launch boxes.

In conclusion, in this diagram, we teach the how process of recycle a wasted bottles and then refurnished a new products.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0

The response covers the main steps of the recycling process from initial collection to the production of end products, satisfying the basic requirements of Task Achievement. However, the explanation of individual stages is somewhat descriptive rather than analytical, lacking a well-structured overview. The introductory and concluding sentences are weak and contain awkward phrasing ('the process how plastic bottles are recycled'). While the sequence of steps is generally outlined, the lack of a proper overview paragraph keeps this response at a Band 5.0 level.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 4.0

Coherence and cohesion are negatively affected by poor paragraphing and repetitive sequencing devices. The main body of the response is compressed into one long, run-on paragraph consisting of a single massive block of text, making it difficult for the reader to follow the distinct stages. Although transitional words like 'First step', 'Furthermore', 'Fourthly', and 'Lastly' are used, their mechanical application and lack of proper punctuation or sentence boundaries lead to a disorganized overall structure. Referencing is frequently unclear, resulting in a score of 4.0 for this criterion.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

The lexical resource is limited and basic. The student attempts some topic-specific vocabulary related to the diagram such as 'sanitation worker', 'recycling center', 'plastic pellets', and 'raw material'. However, there are numerous word choice and collocation errors, such as 'furnished a new product', 'launch boxes' instead of lunch boxes, and 'go to this material into heating machine'. Repetition of simple verbs like 'go' and 'collect' restricts the range, leading to frequent errors that occasionally impede understanding. This performance aligns with a Band 5.0 descriptor.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 4.0

Grammatical range and accuracy are weak throughout the response. The text is characterized by a lack of basic sentence structure control, featuring numerous sentence fragments, missing verbs, and incorrect verb forms (e.g., 'sanitation worker are collect', 'we teach the how process of recycle'). Complex sentence structures are either missing or attempted with severe grammatical faults. Errors are very frequent and frequently distort meaning or cause strain for the reader, placing this submission firmly at a Band 4.0 level.

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

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