Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-11-11
IELTS Writing Task 1 question
The plans below show a harbour in 2000 and how it looks today.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.
Student answer (Band 5.5)
The two maps compare the layout of Porth Harbour in 2000 with how it looks at the present day.
Oveall, the has changed a lot, where the southwestern part of Porth Harbour transformed into many types of businesses. The southeastern also has undergone a significant trasformation.
The marina for parking private yachtsand the place for fishing boats exchanged their places. Extra showers and toilets are now added to southwestern partabove the car park. Cafes and shops are also added in the southern part abouve the road. The par for passenger ferris is also expanded.
The castle which in 2000 is now turned to hotel and the former public beach is now owned also changed to private beach for the hotel. extra road is also added which takes to the hotel from the main road.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5
You identify the main overall changes, especially the exchange of the marina and fishing-boat areas and the conversion of the castle into a hotel with a private beach. However, the report is incomplete: it contains 134 words, below the required 150, and several important changes are omitted, including the new cafés and shops beside the lifeboat station, the additional dock jetty and boat, and the continued public beach in the north-east. Some details are unclear or inaccurate: the extra showers and toilets are not simply “above the car park,” and the map shows a road leading toward the hotel rather than clearly establishing that an extra road was added. Develop the overview and report more key changes precisely.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5
The response has a basic, useful structure: an introduction, an overview, and paragraphs describing changes to the harbour and the south-eastern area. This gives the reader some sense of progression, and phrases such as “The castle” help connect related information. However, the progression within the body is uneven, and several ideas are compressed into short statements without clear relationships. For example, the sentence about showers, cafés and the passenger-ferry area moves between locations without explaining how they relate spatially. The overview also contains an unclear construction (“Overall, the has changed a lot”). Use clearer topic grouping—such as harbour facilities first and southern developments second—and add accurate location links to make the sequence easier to follow.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.5
You use some relevant map vocabulary, including “layout,” “transformed,” “marina,” “private beach,” and “passenger ferries,” so the reader can understand the general subject. However, the range is limited and several spelling and word-choice errors reduce precision: “trasformation,” “abouve,” “ferris,” and “par” appear to be misspellings, while “the place for fishing boats” is vague. “Owned” is also not the most suitable way to describe a beach becoming private; “designated” or “converted” would be clearer. Aim for accurate, concise terms such as “facility,” “relocated,” and “adjacent to,” and check spelling carefully. More precise vocabulary would help distinguish the different harbour areas and changes.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0
The response attempts a few different sentence forms, including a comparison in the opening and a relative clause in “The castle which in 2000 is now turned to hotel.” However, control is inconsistent, and errors sometimes make the intended meaning difficult to follow. The overview, “Overall, the has changed a lot,” is missing a clear subject, while “the southeastern also has undergone” has an incorrect word order. Verb forms and articles are also problematic in “which in 2000 is now turned to hotel,” and the final sentence has an unclear structure. Most sentences are simple, with limited accurate use of complex forms. Practise complete clauses, consistent past-to-present comparisons, and article use, then proofread each sentence for a clear subject and verb.
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