Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-10-18

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 process shows nine stages for recycling plastic bottles.

Overall, there are nine stages of the process for recycling plastic bottles. It starts from collecting plastic bottles from dustbin to the end producing and products. Recycled bottles are seprated in right and wrong box.

Firstly, all the plastics are collected from the dustbin. After that dustbin collector truck will take the plastics to the factory. Factory machine or physically plastics bottles are collected and seprately put it in the boxes. All the bottles are compressed into blocks andit is crushed in the small piceses. Crushing machine have gaint two spinner that makes it easier to crush the plastics into pellets, it is washed properly in the large jar.

Finally, after washing the sixth machine helps to produce plastic pellets. Heating is applied from the down to the pellets to form raw materials. And than raw materials is formed, which helps to produce the daily useable products.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the process as having nine stages and include several key steps, including sorting, compressing, crushing, washing, pellet production and heating. The overview also recognises that the process leads to products, but it does not clearly explain the full cycle: the diagram shows end products returning to the recycling bin, and this is an important overall feature. Some details are inaccurate or unclear, such as saying the bottles are separated into “right and wrong” boxes rather than accepted and rejected items, and describing the truck as a “dustbin collector.” The final products are only referred to generally as daily-use products. To strengthen the response, give a clearer overview of the circular process and report the stages and outputs more precisely.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a recognisable sequence, supported by “Firstly,” “After that,” and “Finally,” and the stages are generally presented in the order shown. The paragraphing also separates the overview from the process description. However, the progression is not always easy to follow: the opening repeats that there are nine stages, while the overview’s reference to “the end producing and products” is unclear. Some links between steps are compressed into long sentences, particularly the account of crushing, washing and pellet production. Use one clear paragraph for the overview and organise the remaining stages into a more deliberate sequence, with transitions that show how each material changes and moves to the next stage.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use some relevant process vocabulary, including “compressed,” “crushed,” “pellets,” “heating” and “raw materials,” which helps communicate the main stages. However, the range is limited and several choices are inaccurate or unnatural, sometimes making the process difficult to picture. For example, “dustbin collector truck” does not clearly describe a recycling collection truck, and “right and wrong box” is not an appropriate way to describe sorting. There are also spelling errors such as “seprated,” “piceses,” and “giant.” Aim for precise terms from the diagram and check spelling; varying repeated words such as “plastics” and “produce” would also make the description more fluent.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and longer sentences, and the sequence is mostly understandable. However, control is inconsistent, especially in longer constructions. For example, “Factory machine or physically plastics bottles are collected and seprately put it in the boxes” has an unclear subject and faulty verb structure, while “raw materials is formed” has a subject–verb agreement error. Other examples include “it is crushed” after the plural “bottles,” and “And than raw materials is formed,” where the sentence connection and verb form are problematic. Practise building accurate passive sentences, which are useful for process descriptions, and check agreement, articles and sentence boundaries. Shorter, controlled sentences would help make each stage clear.

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