Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-10-24

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 algorithom for recycling plastic bottles.

Overall, it explain from bin to make products from used bottles. There are total nine steps from recycling to producing end products.

Firstly, process shows that man drop used bottle in the bin then, tuck pickup the plastic bottles from there and drop to recycling centre where the women sorting the bottles which are reused. Furthermore, in next step they were compress into blocks.

Secondly, the machine process starts from there, all reused bottles are crushing through machine and then wash it from water. Moreover, there is one more machine which pellets the plastic and then through the raw material for heat. Therfore, the raw material take shape and then make the products from the raw material. Like plastic boxes, pencils, clothes, water bottles and handbags.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the diagram as a recycling process and include its main stages, from disposal and collection through sorting, compression, washing, pellet production and the creation of new products. The overview also notes that there are nine steps, and the examples of end products are broadly accurate. However, the account is only partial: it does not clearly explain that unsuitable bottles are rejected during sorting, or that the finished products feed back into the cycle. Some stage relationships are also unclear, especially “then through the raw material for heat.” The response is 135 words, below the required 150, so it has limited space to report the process fully. Add the missing loop and clarify how heating produces raw material.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a basic overall structure: an introduction, an overview, and two paragraphs describing the early and later stages. “Firstly” and “Secondly” help signal sequence, and the reader can generally follow the process. However, progression is not consistently clear because several stages are compressed into long, loosely connected sentences. For example, the sentence beginning “Firstly, process shows” moves from disposal to collection, sorting and compression without clearly separating each step. “Moreover” and “Furthermore” are used as general additions rather than precise links between stages, and “from there” has an unclear reference. Use a more consistent sequence of stage-by-stage sentences and explicit links such as “After sorting” and “The washed plastic is then processed into pellets.”

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant process vocabulary, including “recycling centre,” “compress into blocks,” “raw material,” and “end products,” which makes the topic recognisable. The range is nevertheless limited, and several inaccurate or informal choices reduce precision. “Algorithm” is not the right term for a physical recycling process, while “tuck” appears to be an attempted word for the collection vehicle. “Pellets the plastic” is not a natural way to describe this stage; “forms the plastic into pellets” would be clearer. There are also spelling errors such as “algorithom” and “Therfore.” Aim for accurate process verbs—“collects,” “sorts,” “crushes,” “washes,” and “heats”—and check spelling before submitting.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and longer sentences, and the overall meaning is usually recoverable. However, control of sentence structure and verb forms is inconsistent, which fits this level. Examples include “Overall, it explain,” where the subject and verb do not agree, and “the women sorting,” which lacks a finite verb. In “all reused bottles are crushing,” the passive form is incorrect; the plastic should be described as being crushed. Articles and plurals also need attention in phrases such as “in the bin” and “used bottle.” Some sentences join several stages with limited punctuation, making their grammatical relationships difficult to follow. Practise accurate present-simple passive forms for process descriptions, such as “the bottles are sorted” and “the pellets are heated.”

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