Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-09-26

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 6.0)

The diagram illustrates the stages of how biofuel is produced from the initial stage to the final stage.

The first stage of the production starts with the growing of plants and trees with the support of the presence of sunlight and carbon dioxide which serves as energy.After the growing, the harvest is done.From harvesting the plants the next process is the pre-processing of plants to make cellulose.The cellulose is processed immediately and sugar is been made as a result.

To add on, microbes are added to the sugar to make ethanol which is used as a fuel for cars, airoplanes and trucks.When this vehicles burn the ethanol they release carbon dioxide .

The carbon dioxide that is released is the same one that helps the plants and trees to grow.The diagram shows the cycles of the production illustrating that the end product of bio-fuel is re-used as energy for plants.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

The student successfully covers all the main stages of the ethanol production cycle shown in the diagram, beginning with plant growth, harvesting, pre-processing, cellulose creation, and processing into sugars. The addition of microbes to create ethanol, its use in various modes of transport, and the subsequent release and reuse of carbon dioxide are also accurately reported. While the response meets the minimum word requirement by reaching 155 words, the overview is rather simplistic, merely stating that the diagram illustrates the stages from initial to final. To reach a higher band, the overview should succinctly encapsulate the cyclic nature of the process and the primary inputs and outputs, rather than repeating generic phrasing.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a coherent overall arrangement and follows a logical sequence mirroring the flowchart steps from start to finish. However, paragraphing is somewhat underutilised; the text is bunched together rather than broken down into clear logical phases of the process. Cohesive devices are used, but they can be repetitive or mechanical, such as 'The first stage', 'To add on', and 'The carbon dioxide that is released'. Furthermore, referencing is occasionally awkward, such as 'When this vehicles burn', which impacts the smooth progression of ideas across sentences.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The student demonstrates an adequate vocabulary range sufficient to describe the process diagram. Words related to the topic, such as 'biofuel', 'harvesting', 'pre-processing', 'cellulose', 'microbes', and 'carbon dioxide', are used appropriately. However, there are notable word-choice errors and awkward collocations, such as 'sugar is been made' instead of 'sugar is produced' or 'sugars are formed', and spelling/morphology errors like 'airoplanes' and 'this vehicles'. The range remains fairly basic with limited deployment of less common lexical items.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, incorporating relative clauses such as 'which serves as energy' and 'that is released'. However, grammatical accuracy is inconsistent. There are frequent errors in verb forms and agreement, such as 'sugar is been made', 'When this vehicles burn' (singular/plural mismatch), and missing punctuation or clumsy phrasing. While these errors do not completely obscure meaning, they occur frequently enough to prevent the response from achieving a higher band score.

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