Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-09-22
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 5.0)
The process chart illustrates the data regarding how the plastic bottles are recycled in nine processes.
Overall, it is clear that this recycling process starts after the man throwing plastic in garbage box which turns into clean reusuable crushes and became reusuable again.
After the garbage taken from the garbage box ,it is taken by the garbage vehicle for recycling. Then the recycling center staff start to sort the garbages into its categories about whether it is plastic or not for further process. Then the plastics were change into a blocks by compressing it into square shape.
After all these the plastic box started to crush and washed for further use.After crushing and washing it ,it is put in the container so that it can produce plastic pallets and it changes into heating pallets which form raw materials.Then it makes the raw material into end products which again can be used.
In contrast, the process will again be same after the product and be used and thrown. It will be recycle again and be used as before.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 4.5 |
| Overall | 5.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0
The student attempts to describe the nine stages of the plastic bottle recycling process, but the response suffers from significant inaccuracies and informal phrasing in covering the visual data. While the general sequence is outlined—from consumer disposal to sorting, compressing, crushing, washing, pelletising, and producing end products—key mechanical steps are misread or awkwardly summarised, such as 'heating pellets to form raw material'. Furthermore, the overview provided in the second paragraph is overly colloquial ('starts after the man throwing plastic in garbage box which turns into clean reusuable crushes') and fails to properly synthesise the main trends or cyclical nature of the diagram in a formal academic tone. Consequently, the task is only partially addressed.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0
The essay is divided into short paragraphs attempting to follow the stages of the diagram, but the logical progression is hindered by repetitive sentence openings and weak cohesive devices. Words like 'Then' and 'After' are heavily overused to link consecutive sentences (e.g., 'Then the recycling center...', 'Then the plastics...', 'Then it makes...'). Paragraphing is somewhat haphazard, with the conclusion blending into general process description rather than functioning as a distinct summary. Reference pronouns are occasionally unclear, such as 'it' in 'after the product and be used', which disrupts the flow of information for the reader.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.0
The vocabulary used is basic and repetitive, frequently relying on informal terms rather than precise academic lexis suitable for a process diagram. Examples of weak or non-standard collocations include 'garbage box', 'clean reusuable crushes', and 'garbages'. While the student attempts some less common terms like 'recycling centre', 'compressing', and 'pellets', word choice errors and incorrect forms (such as 'reusuable' and 'pallets' versus 'pellets') are noticeable and detract from the quality of the response, limiting the lexical score to the Band 5 level.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 4.5
The student demonstrates a very limited range of grammatical structures, relying mostly on simple sentences and basic active voice constructions where passive voice is typically expected for process descriptions (e.g., 'the man throwing plastic', 'the plastics were change into a blocks'). There are frequent grammatical errors throughout the text, including tense inconsistencies ('starts after the man throwing', 'the plastic box started to crush'), incorrect prepositions, and article omissions. These errors frequently cause strain and difficulty for the reader in following the precise mechanics of the process.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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