Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-09-27
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 5.0)
The plans below compare the layout of Porth Harbour in 2000 and the current date.
Overall, the harbour gone through significant developments in the period of 26 years. As campare to older map the recent harbour provides more facilities in a structured manner such as, more showers and toilets are constructed. A disused castle is now operational for tourists with private beach.
The most prominant development held in the north west side, there are now three ducks two reserved for cargo ships and one for passengers' ferrie whereas, older map had only two ducks. Public beach are remained same as before. Beside the main road in the west, more parking space has been provided and doubled the shower and toilet rooms. Marine private yachts and fishing boats swiped their positions in recent development.
There were a disused castle at the south east edge, which converted into a hotel for tourists and visitors and the public beach along the castle became hotel's property now uses as a private beach. Lifeboat placement remained the same however, new cafes and shops are now opened next to it, near the road.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0
The student attempts to address the task by highlighting key changes between the two maps, such as the relocation of the marina and fishing boats, the conversion of the disused castle into a hotel, and the addition of cafes and shops. However, there are significant inaccuracies in reporting visual details. For instance, the student mentions 'ducks' instead of docks, claims there are three docks when the map shows no such change, and states that 'cargo ships' are present, which is entirely unsupported by the visual data. The overview is also very weak, featuring awkward phrasing and an inaccurate time frame ('period of 26 years' from 2000 to 'today'). Consequently, the response achieves a Band 5.0 due to limited and partially inaccurate coverage.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0
The response has an identifiable overall structure, beginning with an introductory sentence and attempting to group details by location and feature. However, paragraphing is poorly handled, resulting in one dense body paragraph that mixes disparate points together. Cohesive devices are weak or mechanically used ('As campare to older map', 'Beside the main road', 'There were a disused castle'). Referencing and logical progression are frequently disrupted by confusing leaps between the north, west, and south areas. The progression lacks clarity, keeping the response at a Band 5.0 level.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.0
The lexical range is limited and inadequate for a clear, precise academic report. The student makes several notable vocabulary errors, such as using 'ducks' instead of docks and 'swiped' instead of swapped/switched. Other awkward phrases include 'recent date' and 'operational for tourists'. While some relevant topic vocabulary is attempted (e.g., 'marina', 'fishing boats', 'private beach'), frequent word-choice errors and spelling mistakes ('prominant', 'ferrie') occasionally impede communication. This performance aligns with Band 5.0 descriptors.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0
The essay displays a very limited range of grammatical structures, relying heavily on simple sentences and basic clauses with frequent structural errors. There are numerous basic grammatical inaccuracies, such as subject-verb agreement issues ('the harbour gone through'), incorrect prepositions ('held in the north west side'), and tense confusion ('Public beach are remained same as before'). Complex structures are rarely attempted, and when they are, they contain noticeable errors ('There were a disused castle at the south east edge, which converted into a hotel'). This warrants a Band 5.0.
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