Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-10-25

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 process daigram demonstrates the production of ethanol.

Overall, it is a 6 stage recycle process. It begins with the consuption of natural sunlight and co2 consumed by plants and trees, and finally microbes added added for ethonal production and the cycle continues.

First of all the cycle starts from the nature sunlight and atmospheric co2 which is cosumed by the palnts and then the farmers harvest them for next preprocessing the cellulose from the raw plants by grinding the sugarcane for the liquid cellulose form.

Following that, cellulose is the processed to extract sugars and in final stage special microbes are added for ethanol production and then which is used as biofules for various forms of transportations like car,truck,aircraft from that vechiles the co2 is releasd to the atmosphere.

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response5.5
Coherence and Cohesion5.5
Lexical Resource5.5
Grammatical Range and Accuracy5.0
Overall5.5

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the subject as ethanol production and describe the main sequence from plant growth and harvesting through processing, sugar extraction, microbes and transport use. However, the overview is inaccurate: this is not a six-stage process, and the cycle does not end with microbes being added; ethanol is produced and used, with carbon dioxide returning to support plant growth. The claim that cellulose is made by “grinding the sugarcane” is not shown in the diagram, so avoid adding unsupported detail. The response also falls 20 words short of the required minimum, which limits the opportunity to report the cycle and its key stages fully. Include the carbon-dioxide loop and describe the stages more precisely.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a basic sequence, signalled by “Overall,” “First of all,” and “Following that,” and the reader can generally follow the production stages. However, the organisation is compressed into one overview and two long body paragraphs, with several stages crowded into single sentences. The overview also gives an unclear endpoint, and the final sentence joins processing, transport and carbon-dioxide release without clearly separating these parts of the cycle. Some linking is mechanical rather than showing the relationships between stages. Use distinct paragraphs for the overview and process details, and connect each stage with clear references such as “the resulting cellulose” and “after the fuel is used.”

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use some relevant process vocabulary, including “harvest,” “cellulose,” “extract sugars,” “microbes” and “atmosphere,” which helps communicate the topic. However, the range is limited and several word-choice, collocation and spelling problems reduce precision: “recycle process” is not a natural description of a cycle, “consuption” and “ethonal” are misspelled, and “biofules” is inaccurate. “Transportation” is also less natural here than “transport” or “vehicles.” The unsupported phrase “grinding the sugarcane” introduces a specific material and method not shown in the diagram. Aim for accurate process terms and check spelling; use the diagram’s labels rather than guessing at details.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more extended sentence forms, including a sequence introduced by “Following that,” and the overall meaning is usually recoverable. However, the range is limited, and complex sentences are often faulty. For example, “and finally microbes added added for ethonal production” lacks a correctly formed verb and repeats a word, while “and then which is used” has an incomplete clause. There are also errors in articles, agreement and sentence construction, as in “cellulose is the processed” and “the farmers harvest them for next preprocessing.” These recurring problems sometimes make relationships between stages difficult to follow. Build shorter, complete sentences first, then combine them with accurate clauses and consistent present-tense verbs.

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.