Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-10-15

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 5.0)

Given diagram illustrates the process of ethanol production.

The picture shows that plants produced their own food, where they needed carbondioxide and water in the presence of sunlight and they grown. Grown plants were harvested and sent to pre processing where cellulose was seperated. After processing sugars were seperated and added with microbes which helped in ethanol production.

In given picture the process of ethanol production looks very simple which converted into ethanol and then used by different vehicles which again converted and released it into atmosphere in the form of carbondioxide.

The same process repeats again and again in the form of a cycle.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

You identify the main subject and give a basic account of the sequence from plant growth through harvesting, processing and ethanol production, then note that the process forms a cycle. However, the response only partially covers the diagram: it omits the key stages of cellulose becoming sugars and the role of microbes in sufficient detail, and it does not mention ethanol being used by cars, trucks and aircraft. The claim that plants need water is not shown in the visual, while the return of carbon dioxide to support plant growth is only described generally as release into the atmosphere. The overview is present but under-developed. The response is also 45 words below the required minimum, limiting the detail you can provide. Add the missing stages and accurately explain the carbon-dioxide loop.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a basic sequence: it moves from plant growth to processing, then to ethanol use and the cycle. This gives the reader a general sense of the process, and phrases such as “After processing” and “then” help signal order. However, the ideas are compressed into three short paragraphs, with no clear separation between the production stages and the later transport-and-recycling stage. Connections are sometimes unclear: “which again converted and released it” does not make clear what is converted or how carbon dioxide returns to the plants. The repeated references to “the process” and “the same process” also make the progression feel repetitive. Use a clear overview followed by logically grouped stages, and make each link between stages explicit.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use some relevant process vocabulary, including “harvested,” “pre processing,” “cellulose,” “sugars,” “microbes” and “ethanol,” so the reader can recognise the topic. However, the range is limited and several choices or forms are inaccurate, which makes parts of the description less precise. For example, “plants produced their own food” is not an appropriate description of the diagram’s growth stage, and “converted into ethanol” does not clearly identify what is converted. Spelling errors such as “carbondioxide” and “seperated” are noticeable, while “in the form of a cycle” is an awkward expression. Use accurate process verbs such as “is broken down,” “is converted” and “is released,” and check spelling and standard forms such as “carbon dioxide” and “pre-processing.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt to combine ideas using clauses, as in “where they needed carbondioxide and water in the presence of sunlight,” and you use passive forms such as “were harvested” and “were seperated.” However, the range of sentence structures is limited, and errors occur frequently enough to make some relationships difficult to follow. “Plants produced their own food” shifts into the past, while “they grown” has an incorrect verb form; “which converted into ethanol” is also missing a clear subject and auxiliary. In “sugars were seperated and added with microbes,” the construction does not clearly express the intended relationship. Practise consistent present-simple passive forms for process descriptions, for example, “The material is processed, producing sugars, and microbes are then added.”

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