Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-10-14

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 two plans compare Porth Harbour that used to be in 2000 with how it appears today.

Overall, the Porth Harbour has undergone significant development over the period, with architecture being added new places. The public beach and road have remained unchanged.

In 2000, the area to the north of plan has showers and rest rooms and car park and another car park in the south which is directly connected to the main road. But now it has also teh showers and toilets. In the east they also added the two docks for ferries.

To the south east corner Marina has also swapped with fishing boats. They added new shops and cafes, the bigest update is Castle has been completely replaced with Hotel and public beach converted to private for the hotel. There is a specific road to the Hotel. Although the Lifeboats are remain unchanged.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the broad transformation and include relevant comparisons, such as the marina and fishing boats changing places and the castle becoming a hotel. The overview also notes that the public beach and road remain, although the beach is now private on the southern side, so this statement is not fully accurate. Several details are unclear or incorrect: the two docks were not added for ferries; the northern dock gained an additional jetty and has two boats, while the passenger-ferry area is shown separately. The hotel replaces the castle, but the road is not described as a new road. The response also omits important changes such as cafés and shops and the added showers and toilets. It is four words below the required minimum. Develop a clearer overview and report the main changes precisely.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a basic paragraph structure: an introduction, an overview and two paragraphs of details. This gives the reader a general route through the comparison, and phrases such as “In 2000” and “But now” signal a time contrast. However, the progression is not consistently clear. The third paragraph moves from northern facilities to docks, while the final paragraph combines the marina, new shops, the hotel, beach and lifeboat without a clear spatial or thematic order. Some references are also difficult to follow, particularly “the two docks” and “the south east corner Marina.” Organise the details by location or by major changes, and use clearer linking and reference so each comparison is easy to track.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use some relevant map vocabulary, including “swapped,” “replaced,” “converted” and “remained unchanged,” which helps communicate the main transformations. However, the range is limited and several choices are imprecise or unnatural for describing plans. “Architecture being added new places” does not clearly express that facilities were developed, and “two docks for ferries” mislabels the dock and jetty arrangement. “Bigest update” is informal and misspelled, while “specific road” is vague. There are also spelling errors such as “teh” and “cafes” (the latter should be “cafés” if using the accent). Aim for precise location and change vocabulary, and check spelling and collocations before submitting.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The response includes some attempts at complex sentences, such as “Although the Lifeboats are remain unchanged,” but the structure is faulty. Errors occur frequently in sentence construction and verb forms: “the Porth Harbour has undergone” uses an unnecessary article, “they added the two docks” has an unclear subject and inaccurate tense, and “the Lifeboats are remain unchanged” combines two verb forms incorrectly. The phrase “the area to the north of plan has” also needs an article, and “Castle has been completely replaced with Hotel” lacks articles. Most sentences are understandable, but these recurring errors sometimes make relationships between features unclear. Practise accurate past-versus-present comparisons and article use, and proofread each sentence for a complete, correctly formed verb.

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

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.