Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-10-06

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 shows the numerous stages of production of ethanol from plants and trees and how the end product of ethanol is taken up again by crops.

Overall, producing ethanol is a nine-stage process, which starts from the energy which is sunlight and carbon dioxide and ends with usage of ethanol by different types of vehicles, sugarcane crops is use for production of ethanol.

Initally, sunlight and carbon dioxide is taken by plants and trees for their growth from environment.Sugar cane crop is harvested by farmers through specialized tractors, these crops went through pre processing and converted to cellulose. Which is the main product for producing ethanol,cellulose then passes through processing units and turned into sugars.

After sugar production specific microbes are added and the end product ethanol is formed which is use by different kind of vehicles. These includes cars,truc

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

You identify the main subject and give a broad start-to-finish account, including plant growth, harvesting, processing, sugar production, microbes and ethanol. However, the overview is not fully accurate: the diagram shows a cycle in which carbon dioxide from vehicles returns to support plant growth, not ethanol being “taken up again by crops.” You also introduce sugarcane, which is not specified, and the response ends before completing the transport and carbon-dioxide stages. The process is described as nine stages, but the diagram’s key feature is the circular relationship between production and emissions. The response is also below the required 150 words. To improve, give a precise overview of the cycle and cover all stages, especially ethanol use and carbon dioxide returning to the plants.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a basic progression from the initial energy input through processing to ethanol, and paragraph breaks help distinguish the overview from the detailed stages. Sequencing words such as “Initially,” “After,” and “then” make the order generally understandable. However, the final paragraph is cut off at “truc,” so the account has no completed ending and the cycle is not brought back to plant growth. Some links between ideas are also awkward: “Which is the main product…” is separated from the preceding sentence, while the overview combines several points without a clear hierarchy. Organise the body into complete stages and use a final sentence to explain the return of carbon dioxide, ensuring each reference clearly connects to the process.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant process vocabulary, including “harvested,” “pre processing,” “cellulose,” “microbes,” and “ethanol,” which allows the reader to follow the general subject. There is some variation in how stages are described, such as “passes through” and “turned into.” However, several choices are imprecise or unnatural for a process description: “taken up again by crops” misrepresents the cycle, “end product … is taken up” is unclear, and “specific microbes” is less suitable than a neutral description of microbes being added. “Sugar cane” is also unsupported by the diagram. Spelling and word-form slips such as “Initally” and “pre processing” reduce accuracy. Aim for precise process collocations and use only labels or details shown in the visual.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more extended sentence forms, for example, “After sugar production specific microbes are added and the end product ethanol is formed.” The sequence is often understandable, but errors are frequent and sometimes make relationships unclear. Subject–verb agreement is inconsistent in “sunlight and carbon dioxide is taken” and “These includes”; tense shifts appear in “these crops went through”; and articles and sentence boundaries are often missing. The fragment “Which is the main product…” should be joined to the previous sentence, and punctuation spacing is inconsistent. The final sentence is incomplete. Practise accurate present-simple passive forms for process stages, such as “the crops are harvested” and “the cellulose is processed,” and check agreement, sentence boundaries and punctuation.

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

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.