Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-09-12
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 diagram depicts the comparasion of the Porth Harbour layout in 2000 and the present day.
Overall, the current harbour has substantial progress by developing new infrastractures such as enhacing accessibility from the main road, cafes and shops, and built an additional dock platform for passenger ferries in contrast to year 2000.
In 2000, the main road, located at the west side, had one direct access from the highway while today, it upgraded to two parking lots with additional public restroom. Furthermore, in the southern center, establishments are added adjacent to the hotel with exclusive beach, which was a abandoned castle before.
In the north side of the harbour, docking platform are situated where passenger ferries arrive, and provides access to public beach. Fishing boats and private yachts are now in opposite directions on the west side.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The response covers the main features of the harbour changes between 2000 and the present day, noting additions such as cafes, shops, a new dock platform, and parking lots. An overview is provided, and some comparisons are made. However, the response is under the required length, containing only 137 words compared to the minimum of 150. This negative impact on length restricts the fullness of the response, keeping the overall task achievement at Band 5.5.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0
The essay is divided into logical paragraphs, beginning with an introduction, followed by an overview, and then supporting body paragraphs detailing the west, south, and north areas. Transitional phrases such as 'In 2000', 'while today', and 'Furthermore' are used to structure the information, though referencing and cohesion can occasionally feel mechanical. The progression of ideas is generally clear.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The student attempts a range of vocabulary suitable for describing maps, such as 'infrastructure', 'establishments', 'adjacent', and 'docking platform'. However, there are notable spelling errors ('comparasion', 'infrastractures', 'enhacing', 'abandoned' used correctly but with context issues) and word-choice awkwardness ('current harbour has substantial progress by developing'). The vocabulary range is adequate for the task but limited.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, such as 'In 2000, the main road... had one direct access... while today, it upgraded to two parking lots'. However, there are frequent grammatical errors, such as missing passive voice ('it was upgraded' instead of 'it upgraded'), awkward phrasing ('built an additional dock platform'), and preposition or article errors. These errors occasionally disrupt the flow of reading.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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