Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-10-09

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 6.5)

The following maps compare the changes in the Porth Harbour in 2000 and today.

Overall, extra public facilities have been added on the harbour. Mainly, construction of the hotel on the place of a disused castle, an addition of dock for passenger ferries, cafes and shops, an extra shower and toilets.

The Castle that was located on the southern-east corner of the harbour, has been demolished and reconstruction of the hotel with a linking road that have access on the main road. Public beach near the castle was converted into private beach which only specify for the hotel. Cafes and shops were built along the link road, just adjacent to lifeboat area and marina (private yachts).

Southern car parking that was linked by side road in 2000, has been linked directly to the main road and another addition of shower and toilets just next to the car park. The location of marina and fishing boat area have been interchanged, with more space to marina now. Another dock area is constructed for the parking of more passenger ferries.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.0

You identify the main transformation from a disused castle to a hotel and correctly report that the southern beach became private, cafés and shops were added, and the marina and fishing-boat areas switched locations. The overview also signals broad development of harbour facilities. These are relevant, well-selected features and show a clear understanding of the maps. However, some details are inaccurate or imprecise: the dock was not newly added, but gained an additional jetty and a second berthed boat; the southern car park was not linked directly to the main road in the present plan; and the extra showers and toilets are beside the marina, not simply next to that car park. A more precise overview and clearer reporting of these changes would strengthen the response.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, an overview, and two paragraphs describing changes. The sequence from the southern area to the harbour facilities is generally understandable, and phrases such as “Overall” and “The location of marina and fishing boat area have been interchanged” help signal the main points. This coherent arrangement meets the lower-band expectations, while the attempt to group related changes shows some progression. However, the overview is a fragment-like list, and the final paragraph combines several changes without a clear spatial or thematic order. Some references, such as “another dock area,” are also unclear. Use complete overview sentences and group changes by location or by type of development to make the progression more controlled.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of map vocabulary, including “converted into private beach,” “interchanged,” “adjacent,” and “southern-east corner.” These choices communicate several important changes, and the response attempts some less common terms rather than relying only on basic words. However, inaccurate word choice and collocation sometimes reduce precision: “addition of dock” suggests a new dock, while the map shows an extra jetty; “parking of more passenger ferries” is not a natural description of boats berthed at a dock; and “linking road” is not clearly supported by the plan. There are also awkward forms such as “extra shower and toilets.” Aim for precise map terms and natural collocations, such as “an additional jetty,” “boats berthed,” and “additional shower and toilet facilities.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and more complex structures, including relative clauses (“which only specify for the hotel”) and a comparison of the marina and fishing-boat locations. However, errors in sentence construction, agreement, articles, and verb forms are frequent enough to make some sentences awkward. For example, “Mainly, construction of the hotel … an addition of dock…” is not a complete sentence, while “the Castle … has been demolished and reconstruction of the hotel” mixes verb forms and lacks a parallel structure. In “the location … have been interchanged,” the subject is singular, so the verb should agree. Work on complete sentence patterns, consistent past or present-perfect forms, and subject–verb agreement; these changes would make your meaning easier to follow.

See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.

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