Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-10-22

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 6.0)

The map illustrates some changes that taken place in Porth Harbour between 2000 and now.

It is clearly seen that Porth Harbour undergone some major developments in terms of tourism and visitors facilities. The main changes are replacement of castle disused into a hotel, constrction of cafes & shops and relocation of fishing boats.

In 2000, there was a main road that divided into the two paths. On the western side, showers & toilets were located with car park below this site. In front of this, Marine(private yachts) were situated. Fishing boats were located at south direction alongside the car park. Public beach were placed at the northern side as well as alongside the castle disused which is situated at the east-south corner. Passenger ferries were operated near the dock area. In addition, lifeboat is placed at the end of road.

At present, castle disused is placed with hotel. Public beach is transformed into private beach for hotel. The placement of fishing boats and Marine has been switched with addition of showers&toilets as well as cafes &shops in the south side. The dock, paseenger ferries, public beach and lifeboat have also been retained. The harbour's road layout has been modified.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You identify the main overall direction of change: the harbour has been developed for visitors, the disused castle has become a hotel, and the fishing-boat and yacht areas have switched. You also mention the new cafés and shops and the change from a public to a hotel beach. However, some details are unclear or inaccurate. In 2000, the road did not divide into two paths; a road branched east from the main road. The northern public beach remains public, while the beach beside the former castle becomes private. The description of the facilities added in the south is also imprecise, and the changed dock arrangement is not explained. A more precise overview and clearer coverage of these changes would strengthen the report.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The response has a clear overall structure: an introduction and overview are followed by descriptions of the harbour in 2000 and today. This chronological organisation makes the main comparison easy to follow, and phrases such as “In 2000” and “At present” guide the reader effectively. The overview also helps establish the main theme before the details. To make the progression more consistently clear, group related features by location or type of change, rather than moving between roads, beaches, boats and facilities within the same paragraph. Some references are difficult to follow, particularly “In front of this” and “this site,” because their referents are not explicit. More precise linking and referencing would build on the coherent arrangement already present.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use a reasonable range of vocabulary for describing map changes, including “replacement,” “relocation,” “retained” and “transformed.” These choices help communicate the main developments, and the topic-specific terms generally make the harbour features identifiable. However, some word choices and collocations are inaccurate or awkward, such as “castle disused,” “Marine(private yachts)” and “The placement … has been switched.” There are also spelling errors in “constrction” and “paseenger,” and inconsistent spacing around labels such as “cafes &shops.” Use standard map-description phrases and check spelling and word forms carefully. More precise vocabulary would make the comparisons clearer without requiring a much wider range.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and more complex sentence forms, including a passive construction in “Public beach is transformed into private beach” and a compound sentence listing retained features. The meaning is generally understandable, but some grammatical errors recur. For example, the opening “changes that taken place” needs an auxiliary, and “Porth Harbour undergone” is missing “has.” Articles and agreement are also inconsistent in “a main road,” “Public beach were placed” and “lifeboat is placed.” Tense control shifts between past and present, while “the two paths” does not form a clear grammatical description of the road layout. Review auxiliary verbs, articles, subject–verb agreement and consistent tense use; these corrections would improve accuracy while preserving your sentence variety.

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