Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-10-28
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 5.0)
The map illustrate the changes witj some key main features in Harbour that have taken place in between 2000 and today.
At a glance this Map are showing the two pictures of harbour2000 and today Harbour. Overall this harbour has several changes, like facilities and fatures.
In 2000 Harbour contain Marina,car park,showers & toilets on Main road
in Eastern south side Porth Harbour contain castle (disused), small public beach. In old Harbour only lifeboat will be occured on road.After some time castle disused converted into hotel with the lifeboat and coffee shop on road.
In today Harbour west side contain fishing boats,showers & toilet,car park on Main road.In western south side Harbour also contain showers & toilets, car park and Marina (private yachts). From 2000 lower Estern side contain castle (disused) in now a days castle (disused)converted into hotel. In porth Harbour at that time coffee shops opens on road with life boat.One more important changing occured in eastern south side beach are only used for hotel.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 4.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 4.5 |
| Overall | 5.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0
You identify some important changes, including the castle becoming a hotel, the addition of cafés and shops near the lifeboat, and the southern beach becoming private. However, the response only partially summarises the plans: it gives little clear overview of the harbour’s main transformation and omits major changes such as the marina and fishing boats exchanging locations and the extra jetty and boats at the dock. Some locations are also unclear or inaccurate; for example, fishing boats are described as being on the western side, rather than in the northern dock basin today. Develop a concise overview and compare the key changes between 2000 and today, using the compass directions accurately to make the information clearer and more complete.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.5
The response has a basic paragraph structure, moving from an opening to a general statement and then descriptions of the two time periods. This gives the reader some sense of organisation. However, progression is difficult to follow because details are repeated or presented in an unclear order: the hotel conversion and cafés are mentioned more than once, and the final paragraph shifts between locations and time periods. Linking phrases such as “After some time” and “From 2000” do not clearly show which features are being compared. Group the changes by area or by major development, and use clear references such as “By today” and “In contrast” to connect the information accurately.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.0
You use some relevant map vocabulary, including “Marina (private yachts),” “car park,” “lifeboat,” and “private beach,” which helps identify features of the harbour. However, the range is limited and several word choices or collocations make the description difficult to interpret, such as “lifeboat will be occured on road” and “coffee shops opens on road.” There are also spelling and word-form errors, including “fatures” and “changing.” Aim for precise verbs and location phrases suited to describing maps, such as “was located,” “was replaced by,” and “adjacent to.” This will make your comparisons more natural and reduce ambiguity.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 4.5
You attempt both simple statements and longer sentences, but grammatical errors are frequent and sometimes make relationships between features unclear. For example, “The map illustrate” has subject–verb disagreement, while “In today Harbour west side contain” lacks a clear article and has an incorrect verb form. Tense control is also inconsistent when describing the two plans: use the past for 2000 and the present for today. Sentence boundaries and punctuation need attention, particularly in the long final paragraph, where several ideas run together. Practise building accurate comparison sentences, for example, “In 2000, the castle stood on the south-eastern headland; today, a hotel occupies the site.”
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