Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-11-03

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)

The diagram illustrates the process of producing biofuel which is called ethanol.

Overall, the process consist of six stages, beginning with harvesing plants and ending with added microbes to makt biofuel.

In first stage plants and trees were harvested and proceded to next step where raw material were pre-processing and sending to the next stage where it is mixed to make cellulose .

In the fouth stage cellulose is processed and sending forward to fifth stage where it is converted to sugar. In final stage microbes are added to sugar to make ethanol which will be used as biofuel in cars, planes and trucks.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.5

You identify the subject and give a brief overview, but the account only partially represents the diagram. The overview says there are six stages and that the process ends with microbes being added, whereas the diagram continues through ethanol and transport use, with carbon dioxide returning to support plant growth. Several details are also inaccurate: plants are grown before harvesting, and cellulose is produced after pre-processing rather than being made by mixing raw material. You do mention the main conversion from cellulose to sugars and the addition of microbes, but the stages are not reported clearly or completely. The response is also 46 words below the required minimum, limiting the detail you can include. Cover the full cycle and distinguish each stage accurately.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a basic overall shape: an introduction, an overview, and a sequence of process details. Words such as “Overall,” “In first stage,” and “In the fouth stage” help signal movement through the process. However, the progression is difficult to follow because the stages are numbered inconsistently and some steps are compressed into long, loosely connected sentences. For example, the sentence beginning “In first stage” combines harvesting, pre-processing, and cellulose without clearly showing how one leads to the next. The overview also conflicts with the later account by calling microbes the ending. Use separate, clearly ordered sentences or paragraphs for the stages, and connect the final fuel use and carbon-dioxide return to complete the cycle.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use some relevant process vocabulary, including “harvested,” “pre-processing,” “cellulose,” “processed,” and “microbes,” so the topic is generally recognisable. However, the range is limited and several word choices or forms are inaccurate, which makes parts of the process unclear. “Mixed to make cellulose” does not accurately describe the diagram, while “added microbes to makt biofuel” is an awkward and misspelled phrase. There are also spelling errors such as “harvesing,” “proceded,” and “fouth.” Aim for precise process language and check spelling carefully. For example, describe material as being “converted into” sugars and say that microbes are “added to ferment” them, rather than relying on repeated forms of “make.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple statements and longer sentences, but control is uneven, and errors in verb forms, agreement, articles, and sentence construction sometimes make the sequence hard to understand. Examples include “the process consist,” “raw material were,” and “cellulose is processed and sending forward”; these need forms such as “consists,” “raw materials were,” and “is processed and sent.” The overview’s “beginning with harvesing plants and ending with added microbes” also lacks a parallel grammatical structure. Most sentences follow a basic pattern, with limited accurate use of more complex clauses. Practise describing stages with consistent passive forms, such as “The plants are harvested before the material is pre-processed,” and check subject–verb agreement and articles.

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