Band 4.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 4.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-10-17

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 4.5)

The plan clearly illustrate port harbour used to be and updated version of it after convert it in modernise.

overall it used to looked unattractive with specific facilities , after refurnisihing and furthure additions of some advance facilities which has enhace tourist attractions and comfortability.

In 2000 shower and toilets were on west side of it and car park next to it with two seperate sections beside it main road where going ,marine private yachts was on east

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response3.5
Coherence and Cohesion4.5
Lexical Resource5.0
Grammatical Range and Accuracy4.5
Overall4.5

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 3.5

You identify the harbour’s redevelopment as the topic and mention some features from 2000, including the showers and toilets, car parking, main road and marina. However, the response is very incomplete: it gives almost no account of how the harbour looks today and does not report the major changes, such as the relocation of the marina and fishing boats, the new hotel and private beach, or the added facilities. The overview also makes unsupported judgements that the harbour was “unattractive” and is now more comfortable, rather than summarising visible changes. The response is below the required 150 words, leaving too little detail to fulfil the task. Describe both plans and select the most significant changes.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.5

There is a basic attempt to organise the response: an opening statement and overview are followed by a paragraph beginning “In 2000”. This gives the reader a general sense of the intended sequence. However, the response stops mid-description (“marine private yachts was on east”), so there is no completed comparison or clear progression through the maps. The opening and overview are also difficult to connect to the specific details, and the single long sentence in the final paragraph contains several locations without clear relationships. Use separate paragraphs for the overview and the main changes, and group details by area or by what changed. Complete each sentence and use clear links such as “whereas” and “by contrast” to guide comparisons.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You attempt some task-related vocabulary, including “facilities”, “tourist attractions”, “car park”, “main road” and “private yachts”, so the reader can recognise the general subject. There are also attempts at less common wording, such as “refurnishing” and “additions”. However, several choices are inaccurate or unnatural: “convert it in modernise” and “comfortability” do not express the intended meaning clearly, while “advance facilities” is an unsuitable collocation. Spelling errors such as “refurnisihing” and “furthure” further reduce clarity. Build a reliable range of map vocabulary—such as “redeveloped”, “relocated”, “replaced by” and “adjacent to”—and check spelling and word forms before submitting.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 4.5

The response attempts both a complex opening (“The plan clearly illustrate…”) and a longer sentence describing the 2000 layout, but control is inconsistent. Subject–verb agreement is incorrect in “plan clearly illustrate”, and the opening construction “used to be and updated version” does not form a complete, accurate comparison. The overview has faulty verb forms in “used to looked” and “which has enhace”, while the final sentence lacks a clear grammatical structure and ends without completing the thought. Most of the response relies on basic clauses, with little accurate variety. Practise forming complete comparative sentences, checking tense and agreement, and using articles and prepositions accurately—for example, “The marina was east of the facilities” and “Today, it has been moved south.”

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