Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-09-13
IELTS Writing Task 1 question
The plans below show the site of a farm in 1950 and the same site today.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.
Student answer (Band 5.5)
The two maps depict the changes in a farm named Beechwood between 1950 and the present day.
Overall, it is evident that the farm experienced a complete shift from a rural layout to an urban one. The most significant modifications include the social hub such as, parking, holiday cottages, camping field. Moreover, road networking facilities was expanded.
In the pervious year, most of the infrastructure was situated at the south side adjacent to the river. The fruits and vegetables section was the most dominant part. In addition with a barn ad farmhouse at the south-east side and a sheep at the north-east side.
Regarding the present layout, the previous sheep vacant area is developed considerably, a solar panels is introduced in the north-east corner of the map. A new parking section and camping field is established. Notably, the fruits and vegetables sections remained nearly unchanged ,additionally a small farm shop is built in the fruit trees section. Furthermore, the farmhouse and chickens area was untouched. For leisure activities holiday cottage is constructed. The new connecting road was expanded across the farm to improve overall access,
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The student successfully identifies and reports the main features of the farm maps from 1950 and the present day, making relevant comparisons such as the development of the vacant sheep area and the retention of the fruit and vegetable sections. An overview is provided in the second paragraph, capturing the main shift from a rural layout to a more commercial and urbanised one. However, some details are slightly inaccurate or confusingly expressed, such as referring to the sheep area as 'a sheep at the north-east side' and missing the precise locations of certain new developments. Ideas are generally clear, though minor omissions and slight confusions in feature reporting place this response firmly at Band 6.0.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The response has a coherent overall arrangement with a clear introduction, an overview paragraph, and distinct body paragraphs for the past and present layouts. However, cohesion within paragraphs is sometimes faulty or mechanical. For example, expressions like 'In addition with a barn ad farmhouse' and 'Additionally a small farm shop is built' demonstrate awkward referencing and punctuation. Paragraphing is used, but the logical progression between sentences occasionally breaks down due to abrupt shifts and grammatical awkwardness, such as starting sentences with disconnected phrases. Cohesive devices are attempted but are not always managed smoothly, leading to a Band 6.0 score.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.0
The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, attempting less common items such as 'modification', 'infrastructure', 'commercial', and 'leisure activities'. However, there are notable word choice and collocation errors, as well as typos, such as 'pervious' instead of 'previous', 'ad' instead of 'and', and 'a sheep' when referring to a sheep area. Furthermore, phrases like 'social hub such as, parking' contain awkward punctuation and phrasing. While the vocabulary is sufficient to convey the main message, the errors and limitations in precision restrict the score to Band 5.5.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, such as 'Overall, it is evident that the farm experienced a complete shift...' and 'Regarding the present layout, the previous sheep vacant area is developed considerably...'. However, there are frequent grammatical errors and awkward structures throughout the text, including subject-verb agreement issues ('road networking facilities was expanded'), missing articles ('a solar panels is introduced'), and incorrect passive voice formations ('holiday cottage is constructed'). Punctuation errors are also present, such as unnecessary commas before lists. These errors cause occasional difficulty for the reader, fitting the Band 5.0 descriptors.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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