Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-09-15
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 given diagram illustrates a harbour in 2000 and in the present.
As can be seen from the first overview. There were two public beaches. Disused castle was located in the south-east corner. Moreover, two car parks were also there which was connected by main road. On the upward side of the first car park, showers and toilets were also constructed. Beside that marina was located. Alongside of the second car park, boats for the fishing were located. Also, dock, public beaches, passenger ferries and life boat were located on the right side.
Turning to the present look. There has significant change compared to the past. In the current diagram, the number of showers and toilets are increased. Also, fishing boats and Marina for private yachts are switched .Some new facilities, such as cafes, shops and private beach open. castle is replaced by hotel.
Overall, many places remain same ,but also few modern facilities added.
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
The response covers the main features of the harbour in 2000 and the changes that occurred today, noting key alterations such as the relocation of the marina and fishing boats, the addition of cafes and shops, and the replacement of the castle with a hotel. However, the overview lacks full clarity, and some details are presented as isolated points rather than a well-synthesised comparison. The report meets the minimum word count, but the development of spatial relationships and overall comparisons could be extended to reach a higher band.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The essay is divided into short paragraphs representing the introduction, past features, current features, and an overall summary. However, paragraphing is somewhat disjointed, and sentence structures within paragraphs lack smooth transitions. For instance, sentences like 'As can be seen from the first overview. There were two public beaches.' contain fragmented phrasing and poor punctuation. Cohesive devices are minimal or mechanical, leading to a choppy progression of ideas.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The vocabulary used is adequate to convey basic changes on the map, such as 'harbour', 'marina', 'fishing boats', and 'hotel'. However, there are notable lexical limitations and errors in word choice and collocation, such as 'upward side' instead of 'northern side', 'boats for the fishing' instead of 'fishing boats', and 'private beach open' instead of 'a private beach was opened'. Repetition of basic structures limits the lexical range.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The text contains a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, but grammatical accuracy is inconsistent. There are several punctuation and sentence-boundary errors, such as sentence fragments ('As can be seen from the first overview.'). Other errors include subject-verb agreement issues ('the number of showers and toilets are increased') and missing articles ('castle is replaced by hotel'). While meaning is generally clear, these persistent errors prevent the grammar score from reaching Band 6.5.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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