Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-11-02

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)

This chart illustrates the information of a harbour in 20000and how it looks now.

Overall, porth harbour totaly has been changed . Many facilities have been added and many noticeable things have been removed from the harbour .Porth harbour bacame very previous and noticeable due to addtion of many capabilities.Accorurding to this chart it had nine to ten facilities .

Firstly , porth harbour in 20s, had a rod in the west .There are also showers and toilets and also two car parks connected to the road .It had a public ,dock and two boats in the north side .Passenger ferrirsis is connected to the marina private yachts and fishing boats .There was also a castle with a public beach and lifeboat that was attached with a little roas .

Today, porth harbour is totaly changed .Marina has been replaced by fishing boats and fishing boats has been replaced by marina .One part of showers and toilets has been added with the car park . Cafe and shops has been included with lifeboat ,also added one boat with others .Castle has been converted into hotel and the private beach is only for hotel .

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response5.5
Coherence and Cohesion6.0
Lexical Resource4.5
Grammatical Range and Accuracy5.0
Overall5.5

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify several important changes, including the exchange of locations between the marina and fishing boats, the addition of cafés and shops, and the conversion of the castle into a hotel with a private beach. However, the overview is unclear and includes unsupported claims: “very previous and noticeable” does not accurately describe the harbour’s development, and the statement that it had “nine to ten facilities” is imprecise. Some details are also misreported: the 2000 map shows one boat at the dock, not two, and the passenger ferries are not described as connected to the marina and fishing boats. To strengthen the response, give a clear overview of the main changes and report the locations and facilities more accurately, including the added jetties and showers/toilets.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, an overall statement, and separate descriptions of the earlier and current harbour. This gives the reader a basic chronological progression. However, the overview is difficult to follow, and several ideas are crowded together in long sentences, particularly the description beginning “It had a public, dock and two boats.” Linking is also sometimes mechanical or unclear, as in “Firstly” and “According to this chart,” while repeated references to “Porth harbour” make the writing less smooth. Organise each period around clear location-based groups, and use precise links such as “In the north” and “By contrast” to make comparisons easier to follow.

Lexical Resource: Band 4.5

You use some relevant map vocabulary, including “marina,” “fishing boats,” “car parks,” “lifeboat,” and “private beach,” so the reader can identify many of the features being described. However, the range is limited and several word choices or spelling errors make meaning unclear. “Very previous” does not convey a suitable change, “capabilities” is not an appropriate term for harbour facilities, and “connected to” is imprecise for describing locations. There are also frequent spelling errors, including “totaly,” “ferrirsis,” and “addtion.” Use accurate terms such as “facilities,” “relocated,” and “adjacent to,” and check spelling carefully.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more extended sentences, and the basic meaning of many changes can be understood. However, grammatical control is inconsistent, especially with articles, agreement, and sentence construction. For example, “Marina has been replaced by fishing boats and fishing boats has been replaced by marina” needs articles and plural agreement: “The marina was replaced by the fishing-boat area, and vice versa.” In “Cafe and shops has been included,” the plural subject requires “have,” and “one part of showers and toilets has been added” is not formed clearly. Most descriptions rely on simple patterns, so practise accurate past and present passive forms and vary sentence structures while checking agreement and punctuation.

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

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