Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-10-20

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 maps illustrate how a harbour has changed and looks now compared with when its built first in 2000.

Overall, a harbour has undergone several redevelopments, with the original features being removed or replaced. New facilities have been added including new path, showers and toilets, cafe and shops, private beach, and hotel, while public beach in north, car park in north- west, passenger ferries and dock remained unchanged.

In 2000, the marina was located in north-west while the fishing boats were located in the south-west, now both have replaced with each other. The castle presented in south-west corner has replaced by the hotel and the public beach near it has changed into the private beach for hotel.

The new path from main road has been added to second car park. Also new showers and toilets have added beside car park in sout-west corner. In south-west the path that before connected car park with road leading to lifeboat has now removed. In addition, cafes and shops have been created near lifeboat in south, meanwhile more docks for boats have been created right next to fishing boats.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.0

You give a clear overview of the redevelopment, noting that facilities were added and some original features were replaced, and you compare the marina and fishing-boat areas as well as the castle and beach. Most of these points match the maps. However, some locations are misreported: the marina was in the northern basin, not the north-west, and the fishing boats were in the southern basin, not the south-west. The castle and hotel are on the south-eastern headland, rather than in the south-west corner. You also say the passenger ferries remained unchanged, although the maps show changes to the dock arrangement, including an additional jetty and two berthed boats today. More precise descriptions of these changes would make the account more fully supported.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The response has a clear overall structure: an introduction, an overview, and two paragraphs describing specific changes. This gives the reader a sensible route through the comparison, and linking expressions such as “Overall,” “In addition,” and “meanwhile” help connect points. The progression is not always fully controlled, however. The final paragraph moves between the new path, facilities, the lifeboat area, and the dock without a clear spatial grouping, while “both have replaced with each other” makes the relationship between the two boat areas difficult to follow. At this level, the organisation is coherent overall, but some cohesion is mechanical or unclear. Grouping changes by location and using clearer references would strengthen the flow.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use a suitable range of map vocabulary, including “redevelopments,” “replaced,” “located,” “facilities,” and “created,” and the reader can generally understand the changes you describe. There are also attempts at more specific phrasing, such as “private beach for hotel.” However, some word choices and collocations are inaccurate or imprecise: “when its built first” does not naturally express the harbour’s earlier state, and “both have replaced with each other” is not a clear way to describe the exchange of locations. “New path” is also too general for the road or access route shown. Aim for more precise map language and check common collocations; this would improve flexibility and accuracy without changing the overall meaning.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mix of simple and more complex sentences, including the overview sentence beginning “Overall” and the contrast in “while public beach in north…”. However, errors in verb forms, articles, and sentence construction recur. For example, “when its built first” needs a past-tense passive form, and “the castle…has replaced by the hotel” is missing the correct passive construction. In “both have replaced with each other,” the verb pattern is also faulty. Articles are often omitted, as in “near lifeboat” and “beside car park,” and “have added” needs a passive form when describing facilities. These errors do not prevent the reader from following the main points, but more reliable control of tense, passive structures, and articles is needed.

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

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