Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-09-16
IELTS Writing Task 1 question
The diagram below shows how a biofuel called ethanol is produced.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.
Student answer (Band 5.5)
The diagram illustratte that how ethanol is genrate which is also called biofuel.
Overall, the whole process contain nine steps which are perform to making ethanol. In the first step, tress and plants grow with the help of sunlight and carbon dioxide. When these crops have grown then it is harvesting. After the harvesting, these plants pre-processed. This step convert the crops into cellulose, then a huge processing is performed on it which convert this agriculture products is form in suger. The microbes is added in the suger because after this it convert into biofuel.
When the ethanol is produce, then it is use in daily life vehicles like airoplanes, trucks, cars and etc. When these vehicels then it genrate carbon dioxide. This carbon dioxide addup with sunlight to help to grow the plants and tress.
This is a complete cycle which shows that how carbon dioxide and sunlight is use in daily life and after the use how it is regenrate.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The student successfully identifies the main stages of the ethanol production cycle shown in the diagram, covering key points from the growth of plants using sunlight and carbon dioxide to harvesting, pre-processing, conversion to cellulose, processing into sugars, the addition of microbes, and finally the production and consumption of ethanol which releases carbon dioxide back into the atmosphere. An overview is attempted at the beginning by noting that the process contains nine steps, capturing the cyclical nature of the process. However, some minor details are slightly misread or overly simplified, such as describing the carbon dioxide as re-adding up with sunlight to help plants grow. Overall, the task is adequately addressed in line with Band 5.5 to 6.0 descriptors.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The response is organised in a logical sequence that follows the steps of the diagram from start to finish. Paragraphing is attempted, with an introductory overview paragraph followed by body paragraphs detailing the stages and the cyclical conclusion. However, cohesive devices are somewhat mechanical and repetitive, relying heavily on basic linkers like 'In the first step', 'When these crops have grown then it is harvesting', and 'After the harvesting'. Referencing is occasionally unclear, such as 'when these vehicels then it genrate', which disrupts the flow. Paragraphing and transitions are adequate for a Band 5.5 score.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.0
The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully incorporating topic-related words such as 'biofuel', 'ethanol', 'sunlight', 'carbon dioxide', 'harvesting', 'cellulose', 'sugars', and 'microbes'. However, there are notable word-choice and morphological errors throughout the text, such as 'illustratte' (illustrates), 'genrate' (generated), 'tress' (trees), 'suger' (sugar), 'airoplanes' (aeroplanes), and 'vehicels' (vehicles). These inaccuracies reflect a limited control of spelling and word forms, placing the lexical resource clearly at Band 5.0.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, such as conditional or temporal clauses introduced by 'When' and 'After'. However, grammatical accuracy is weak, featuring frequent errors in verb forms, subject-verb agreement, and active/passive voice, such as 'how ethanol is genrate', 'these crops have grown then it is harvesting', 'these plants pre-processed', and 'this agriculture products is form in suger'. These persistent errors cause noticeable difficulty for the reader and restrict the grammatical score to Band 5.0.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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