Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-10-02
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 provided diagram illustrates the cyclical process of recycling plastic raw material to manufacture new consumer goods.
Overall, the proccess take squences of stages beginning the collection of new materials and culminating in the creation of new end products like clothing and comtainer. The process is cyclical product obtain at the end.
In the intial, individuals deposit the waste into designed recycling bins. Following the discarded material are transported by the mean of special truck and thirdly different kind of goods are separated by workers in recyclable and non-recyclable materials then plastic contain particles are compressed into a large blocks to facilitate handling and further processing.
In the final stage, the processed raw material is used for producing end products. These finished goods include items such as plastic bottles, t-shirts , and reuseable recyclable bags, which can eventuallybe fed back into the cycle this is the main strategy follow to rcycling.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5
The response addresses the task partially, covering the general idea of the plastic bottle recycling process, but some parts are under-developed or missing key stages. While the writer attempts to provide an overview, it contains repetitive phrasing ('The process is cyclical product obtain at the end') and fails to clearly outline all the distinct sequential stages shown in the diagram, such as the specific transformation from crushed flakes to pellets and heating before becoming raw material. The selection of main features is somewhat limited, leading to an underdeveloped summary that sits firmly in the mid-range of task achievement.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5
There is a coherent overall arrangement with a discernible introduction, body, and conclusion, reflecting the properties of a 6.5 band. The writer attempts to sequence information logically using transition markers such as 'In the overall', 'In the intial', and 'In the final stage'. However, cohesion is at times faulty or mechanical, and referencing is not always clear, particularly with run-on sentences like 'Following the discarded material are transported by the mean of special truck and thirdly different kind of goods are separated'. Paragraphing is present and generally appropriate, but the logical progression between sentences occasionally stumbles due to awkward transitions.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.5
The vocabulary used is limited but minimally adequate to communicate the basic meaning of the process diagram. The writer attempts some less common vocabulary items such as 'cyclical process', 'recycling bins', and 'raw material', but these are accompanied by noticeable errors in word form, spelling, and word choice, such as 'proccess', 'take squences', 'comtainer', 'intial', 'designed' instead of designated, and 'rcycling'. These lexical slips and awkward word choices prevent the response from achieving a higher band, though they do not completely impede overall communication.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0
The text displays a very limited range of structures, with frequent grammatical errors that can cause difficulty for the reader, placing it at the lower end of grammatical control. There are significant issues with verb forms, subject-verb agreement, and basic sentence construction, such as 'the proccess take squences', 'Following the discarded material are transported', and 'this is the main strategy follow to rcycling.' Attempts at complex sentence forms are frequently faulty, and punctuation is occasionally misused, resulting in run-on sentences and missing elements that demand effort from the reader to parse.
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.