Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-09-14
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 plans illustrate the changes that have taken place at Beechwood Farm between 1950 and the present day.
Overall, the farm has undergone significant changes, with several new facilities added and some existing features removed or relocated.
Looking at the first layout of Beechwood Farm in 1950, the main road is in the north-western part of the farm, while a river surrounded the western and southern sides; in the central part of the farm, there were sections of fruit trees, soft fruits, and vegetables. On the right side, there was a barn, a farmhouse and an area for chickens. The northern part of the farm was used for sheep.
Mean while layout of beechwood farm in present day,the farm has undergone several major changes. the area which used for farming in past now its change in camping field, two parking slots are also added. the old trackis changed in to road.bheind te fruit trees farm shop added, while the areas for soft fruits and vegetables have remained unchanged.bar changed with holiday cotages,meanwhile a new, smaller barn has been built near the road junction.the farmhouse and checkens area have remained in their original positions.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The candidate provides a clear overview and successfully reports the main features and changes shown in the two maps of Beechwood Farm between 1950 and the present day. In the introduction and the description of the 1950 layout, the response is well-structured, accurately highlighting the main geographic features like the river, the barn, the farmhouse, and the crop areas. However, the description of the present day suffers from severe mechanical issues and fragmented writing in the final paragraph, although the essential transformations—such as the camping field, farm shop, holiday cottages, and new road—are identified. Overall, all parts of the task are addressed, earning a band score of 6.0.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The response is organized into distinct paragraphs, starting with a clear introduction and an overall summary statement. The first body paragraph describes the 1950 layout with reasonable logical progression and appropriate transitional phrasing such as 'Looking at the first layout' and 'On the right side'. However, the cohesion breaks down significantly in the final paragraph due to run-on structures, lack of capitalization, missing punctuation, and awkward linking like 'Mean while layout of beechwood farm in present day'. Referencing and logical flow are heavily impaired in the second half of the essay, limiting the coherence to a band 5.5.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The candidate demonstrates an adequate vocabulary range for the task, successfully employing terms such as 'illustrate', 'significant changes', 'relocated', and 'original positions'. There are, however, numerous lexical and spelling errors throughout the text, particularly in the final paragraph (e.g., 'checkens' for chickens, 'bheind' for behind, 'cotages' for cottages, 'trackis' for track is). Attempts to use less common vocabulary are undermined by these persistent spelling mistakes and awkward word choices, such as changing 'farming' into a 'camping field'. This performance is consistent with the Band 5.5 descriptor.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The response features a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, particularly in the first half where structures like 'The two plans illustrate the changes that have taken place...' are used successfully. Nonetheless, the second paragraph exhibits a complete breakdown in grammatical accuracy, punctuation, and capitalization (e.g., 'the area which used for farming in past now its change in camping field'). There are frequent grammatical errors, missing auxiliary verbs, and poor punctuation control that cause noticeable difficulty for the reader, anchoring this criterion at a band 5.0.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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