Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-10-14

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 process diagram gives nine steps of recycling plastic bottles.

Overall, according to the diagram this is a nine steps process, starting with collecting bottles from large dustbins and ending with daily life products. Also, this process is done in a factory with the help of machines and workers.

First of all trash is collected to a recycling centre in large vehicals from dustbins, where it would be sorted with the help of a worker. After that it would be compressed into blocks, than it can be crushed before being washed.

Secondly, after being washed the plastic trash goes through from an other machine, which produce plastic pellets. Then it is healed outside to form raw material. Finaly the raw material is used to produce products we use in daily life like T-shirts and pens.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the process as having nine stages and give a relevant overview from collection to finished products. The main sequence is mostly accurate, including sorting, compressing, crushing, washing, pellet production and heating. However, some details are imprecise: the diagram shows bottles placed in a recycling bin and collected by a truck, rather than specifically “large dustbins,” and it does not say the heating happens “outside.” The overview also says the process ends with daily-life products but does not mention that the diagram forms a loop, with products leading back to the start. The response is 15 words below the required minimum, which limits the detail provided. Develop the overview and include the return arrow and a wider range of end products.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, an overview and two paragraphs describing the stages. Sequencing expressions such as “First of all,” “After that” and “Secondly” help the reader follow the process. However, the progression is not fully clear because “Secondly” introduces a later stage without a clearly matched “Firstly,” and the final sentence does not explain the diagram’s return arrow. Some links are also awkward, as in “goes through from an other machine,” which interrupts the flow. Group the stages in a consistent sequence and use transitions that show how each stage connects to the next. A fuller final sentence could clarify how the end products re-enter the recycling cycle.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant process vocabulary, including “sorted,” “compressed,” “crushed,” “washed,” “plastic pellets” and “raw material,” so the main stages are generally understandable. There is some useful variation in describing the stages, but several word choices and spelling errors reduce precision: “healed” is not the intended term for heating, “vehicals” is misspelled, and “daily life products” is an unnatural phrase. “Trash” is also less suitable than “plastic bottles” or “plastic waste” in this formal process description. Aim for accurate, task-specific vocabulary and check spelling carefully. More precise terms for the collection vehicle, the heating stage and the finished goods would make the account clearer and more appropriate for IELTS Academic Task 1.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and more complex sentences, including the relative clause “where it would be sorted with the help of a worker” and the time clause “before being washed.” These structures help connect stages, but control is uneven. For example, “this is a nine steps process” has an incorrect plural form, while “which produce plastic pellets” does not agree with the singular “machine.” The repeated use of “would be” is also not appropriate for describing a process shown as a general sequence; use the present simple passive, such as “is sorted” and “is compressed.” There are also errors in “than it can be crushed” and punctuation around sentence openings. Review agreement, articles and consistent present-tense passive forms.

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