Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-10-15

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 6.0)

The diagram explains the sequential stages involved in recycling process if plastic bottles.

Overall, the process involves nine major steps, beginning from the collecting garbage in the recycle bin and ending with the producing end products from the plastic bottles.

At the first step of the process, the waste is collected from general public in recycle bins placed in many places. Then, the truck collect the waste from the bin and leave at the recycling centre where sorting process undergo. In this process, we seperate the plastic bottles from rest of the waste. After that we compress the bottle into blocks to reduce its size and remove air. In the next stage, crushing process starts in which block is crushed using two large wheel type machine and the small pieces that are produced after that process are washed. The clean small crrushed pieces put into the large machine and that machine generate the plastic pellets. These pellets are heated to form a raw material. Finally, raw material is used to produce end products.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You cover the main sequence from disposal and collection through sorting, compression, crushing, washing, pellet production and heating, and your overview identifies the start and end of the process. Most details match the diagram, including the use of a truck and the production of pellets. However, some features are less fully reported: the sorting stage separates suitable bottles from unsuitable material, and the final raw material is used to make several end products before the cycle returns to the recycling bin. The description of compression as reducing size and removing air is plausible but not shown explicitly, while the two-wheel machine is described imprecisely. A fuller account of the closed loop and the range of products would make the summary more complete.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The response follows the process in a clear chronological order, and the opening overview helps the reader understand the overall sequence. Transitions such as “Then,” “After that,” “In the next stage,” and “Finally” make the stages easy to follow. This is a coherent arrangement, but the linking is somewhat repetitive and relies mainly on time markers. Paragraphing is also limited: the overview and the detailed stages could be separated more clearly, with the stages grouped into logical phases. Some references, such as “that process” and “that machine,” are understandable but could be more precise. Varying the cohesive devices and using clearer paragraph structure would make the progression more flexible and polished.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant process vocabulary, including “sorting,” “compress,” “crushing,” “pellets,” and “raw material,” so the stages are generally identifiable. There is some useful variation in describing the materials and actions. However, several word choices and collocations are inaccurate or awkward, such as “collecting garbage in the recycle bin,” “the truck collect the waste,” and “wheel type machine.” Spelling slips in “seperate” and “crrushed” also reduce accuracy. “Waste” is repeated where “plastic bottles” or “discarded bottles” would be more precise, and “generate” is less natural than “produce” for pellets. Aim for accurate process collocations and check spelling and word forms carefully.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and more complex sentence forms, including a relative clause in “the recycling centre where sorting process undergo” and a sequence of linked actions in the description of crushing and washing. The meaning is usually clear, but some grammatical errors remain. For example, “recycling process if plastic bottles” needs a correct preposition, and “the truck collect” has a subject–verb agreement error. Articles and plural forms are also inconsistent in phrases such as “in recycle bins” and “compress the bottle into blocks.” The sentence beginning “The clean small…” lacks a finite verb before “put.” More careful control of articles, agreement and complete clauses, alongside varied sentence structures, would improve accuracy.

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