Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-10-09

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 process of recycling plastic bottles. The process consists in nine stages, begin with the collection of bottles by householders and ending with the production of products.

Overall, at the first stage plastic bottles are collected by people through dustbins, then dustbins are transported by the municiple transportation to the recycling centre. In this stage, recycling centre started sorting of bottles for next process. At the 4th stage plastic bottles are composed into blocks, then crushning process begins with the help of 2 large machinery cutters, and lay down into water tank for product durability. After this stage, process comes into 6th stage of production plastic pellets, here plastics particles are being heated by machine then passed away for next proccess called heating pellets to form raw material. Initially, particles are starting convert into raw material now the centre workers will start shaping raw material into diverse form of products. Such as, newly fresh plastic bottles, clothes and stationery items.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the process as recycling plastic bottles and give a broad sequence from household collection to end products. The response also includes several relevant stages, such as sorting, compressing, crushing, washing, and producing pellets. However, the overview is not clearly separated from the stage-by-stage account, and some details are inaccurate or unsupported. For example, the diagram shows bottles being transported by a collection truck, not dustbins, and it does not say the water tank improves product durability. The account also misstates the pellet stage: pellets are heated to form raw material, rather than plastic particles being heated before that stage. Describe the full cycle accurately and summarise its main transformation in a concise overview.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response follows much of the process in sequence, and the opening and “Overall” paragraph provide some organisation. However, the progression becomes difficult to follow because the overview contains many detailed stages, while links such as “After this stage” and “Initially” do not always make the sequence clear. The final sentence introduces examples of products, but the transition from raw material to those products is abrupt. Paragraphing is limited, and the reader has to work out where the overview ends and the detailed description begins. Use a distinct overview followed by a clearly ordered account, with precise links such as “Next,” “Following washing,” and “Finally.”

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant process vocabulary, including “sorting,” “compressing,” “pellets,” and “raw material,” which helps communicate the general subject. However, the range is uneven and several word choices or collocations are inaccurate, sometimes making the process harder to understand. For instance, “dustbins are transported” confuses the containers with the bottles, “composed into blocks” is not the intended meaning, and “2 large machinery cutters” is an imprecise description of the crushing equipment. There are also noticeable spelling errors, including “municiple,” “crushning,” and “proccess.” Choose precise verbs for each stage and check spelling; avoid adding technical claims such as “product durability” when they are not shown.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The response attempts both simple and longer sentences, and the overall meaning can usually be followed. However, complex structures are often faulty, and errors occur frequently enough to make some relationships unclear. Examples include “consists in nine stages, begin with,” where the verb pattern and following clause are incorrect, and “recycling centre started sorting,” which has an unsuitable tense and missing article. In “particles are starting convert,” the verb form is incomplete, while “the centre workers will start shaping” shifts into an unsupported future construction. Use consistent present simple for a process description, check subject–verb agreement and articles, and build longer sentences around clear, complete clauses.

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