Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-09-26
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)
These pictures illustrate the comparison between a Port harbour in 2000 and today.
Nowadays, Port harbour is modernized. It has become the tourist attraction, after development there are cafes and shops, Marina and hotel. While in past there was no such places. It was a simple port.
In 2000, on west area was the main road to the port, there were two car parks on north and south sides of the road. Showers and toilets were near left side of car park at northern area, near that was Marina ( private yachts) linked to sea. In nourthern east side was public beach and a dock. In addition, there was castle (disused) near public beach on the southern east side of the port.
In recent time, main road, showers and car parking remained at same location. But there is an addition of shower and toilets near car park. Meanwhile, Marina and fishing boats swtiched there places. There is also an addition of docks at the pervious postion. Furthermore, castle has now developed in to a hotel for the tourist and there is a separate road for the Hotel, it has its private beach which attract the tourist. Cafe and shows are made on the southern east side of the prt near the place of life boat.
In conclusion, Previously the Port harbour was simple and sophisticated but it has become modern.
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 student addresses the task by identifying the main features and making some comparisons between the 2000 and current layout of Porth Harbour. An overview is attempted in the second paragraph, mentioning modernization, cafes, shops, a marina, and a hotel. Key transformations are reported, such as the switching of the marina and fishing boats, the addition of the hotel replacing the disused castle, and the inclusion of cafes and shops. However, some details are slightly inaccurate or imprecise, such as misidentifying the location of cafes and shops and mentioning a separate road for the hotel. Ideas are adequately covered, placing this response at Band 6.0.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5
The response is organized into paragraphs, including an introduction, overview, body paragraphs detailing the two maps, and a brief conclusion. Cohesive devices are used to signal transitions and contrasts, such as "While in past", "In 2000", "In recent time", and "In conclusion". However, referencing and cohesion are sometimes mechanical or faulty, as seen in phrases like "swtiched there places" and "pervious postion". Paragraphing is somewhat disjointed with very short sentences forming separate paragraphs, limiting the overall flow. Progression is evident, but the logical arrangement could be smoother. This aligns with Band 6.0 descriptors.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.5
The vocabulary used is adequate for the task, covering map-specific terms like "marina", "ferries", "lifeboat", and "public beach". The student attempts less common vocabulary such as "modernized", "tourist attraction", and "sophisticated", but there are noticeable spelling errors ("nourthern", "swtiched", "there places", "pervious", "postion", "prt", "shows") and awkward word choices ("in past", "shows made on the southern east side"). These lexical errors and spelling mistakes occasionally detract from the reading experience, though communication is generally maintained, placing it at Band 5.5.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0
The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, utilizing structures like "While in past there was no such places" and "Furthermore, castle has now developed in to a hotel...". However, there are frequent grammatical errors, including missing articles ("in past", "on west area", "to the tourist"), incorrect prepositions ("near left side", "on the northern east side"), and tense inconsistencies. Punctuation and capitalization errors also occur. While the meaning is usually clear despite these flaws, the high frequency of errors prevents the grammar score from reaching a higher band. This corresponds to Band 5.0.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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