Band 4.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 4.0 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-10-10

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 4.0)

The plan below illustrates a harbour in 2000 and how it looks today.

Overall, Porth harbour has not changed much during the time period from 2000 to today, and some facilities have been added in it such as hotels, cafes, and shops.

The Public beach that is situated in north west corner

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 3.0

The response identifies the subject and gives an overview, noting that facilities such as a hotel, cafés and shops have been added. However, the claim that the harbour “has not changed much” does not reflect the substantial changes shown, including the relocation of the marina and fishing boats and the conversion of the castle and public beach into a hotel and private beach. The final sentence is incomplete and reports only one location, so the main features and comparisons are largely missing. The response is also 107 words below the 150-word minimum; nine words copied from the prompt were excluded from the count. To improve, describe the key changes across both plans and support the overview with accurate details.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 3.5

There is a basic attempt to organise the response: an opening sentence is followed by an overview beginning with “Overall.” The use of “and” also links the added facilities to the general statement. However, the response stops after an unfinished sentence, “The Public beach that is situated in north west corner,” so there is no clear progression through the map features or a concluding comparison. The paragraphing and linking are too limited to guide the reader through the changes. Develop a complete sequence—for example, describe the northern harbour area first, then the southern facilities—and use clear links such as “whereas,” “by contrast” and “in addition.”

Lexical Resource: Band 4.5

The response uses some relevant task vocabulary, including “harbour,” “facilities,” “hotels,” “cafes,” and “shops,” and the phrase “during the time period” conveys the comparison across time. However, the range is very limited because the response is so short, and it does not use precise language for the major map changes, such as relocation, replacement or conversion. “Has not changed much” is also an imprecise description of the plans. Use accurate terms such as “was relocated,” “was replaced by,” and “was converted into” to report changes, and name features consistently—for example, “the marina for private yachts” and “the fishing-boat area.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 4.5

The opening sentence is grammatically controlled: “The plan below illustrates a harbour in 2000 and how it looks today.” The overview also attempts a longer sentence using “and,” although its structure is simple. The final line is not a complete sentence: “The Public beach that is situated in north west corner” contains a relative clause but no main clause, leaving the idea unfinished. The response therefore shows only a narrow range of sentence structures, and the incomplete construction limits clarity. Practise writing complete comparisons, such as “The public beach remains in the north-east, while the southern beach is now private.” Check that every sentence has a main clause and a clear subject and verb.

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

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