Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-10-27

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 given picture illustrates the procedure of plastic bottles getting recycled.

The first step of this process is collecting the bottles from the trash, followed by putting them in a recycling truck. Moreover, the bottles are taken to a recycling centre where they start sorting the bottles into two different boxes, one being an accepting box while other was a refusal box. When the sorting had been done, the fourth step was the plastic being compressed into blocks by heavy machinery and then the boxes being crushed and washed. After the machine is done producing the plastic pellets, the pellets get heated to form raw material. Finally, the raw platic has been successfully made and it is ready for producing stuff like shirts, lunch boxes, cables and many other useful things.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.5

You identify the general subject and report several key stages, including sorting, compressing, crushing, washing, pellet production and heating. However, the account is incomplete: it does not clearly explain that the process begins with bottles being put in a recycling bin, collected by a truck, and ends with the raw material being used to make new products before the cycle returns to the start. The overview is also limited, and some details are inaccurate or unclear: the bottles are sorted into accepted and rejected groups, not simply “accepting” and “refusal” boxes, and the diagram does not show “cables.” The response is also below the required 150 words, leaving important stages and the closed-loop nature underdeveloped. Add a concise overview and describe the full sequence accurately.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The stages are generally presented in a sensible order, and linking expressions such as “The first step,” “Moreover,” “When,” and “Finally” help the reader follow the process. The response is arranged as one continuous paragraph, however, so the opening, process details and final outcome are not clearly separated. Some connections are also imprecise: “then the boxes being crushed” makes it unclear whether the boxes or the plastic are crushed, while “After the machine is done” does not clearly identify which machine is meant. Use a short introduction and overview, followed by a clearly sequenced process paragraph. More precise references and transitions between stages would make the progression easier to follow.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use a reasonable range of process vocabulary, including “recycling centre,” “compressed,” “crushed,” “washed,” “pellets” and “raw material.” These terms communicate much of the process, and the meaning is generally clear. Some choices are informal or imprecise for an academic process description: “getting recycled,” “stuff,” and “useful things” are vague, while “accepting box” and “refusal box” are not natural labels for the sorting categories. There is also a spelling error in “platic.” Choose more precise terms such as “accepted and rejected bottles,” “products,” and “manufactured.” Avoid conversational wording and use the diagram’s specific product examples to demonstrate a more controlled range.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

The response includes both simple sentences and more complex constructions, for example “where they start sorting the bottles” and “When the sorting had been done.” Most of the message remains understandable, but some grammatical choices reduce precision. In “one being an accepting box while other was a refusal box,” the second clause needs an article (“the other”), and the tense shifts from “start sorting” to “had been done” and then “was” without a clear reason. The phrase “the boxes being crushed and washed” also leaves the sentence structure incomplete after “then.” Use consistent present simple for a process diagram, and check that each stage is expressed in a complete clause with clear subjects and verbs.

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