Band 4.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 4.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-09-16
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 4.5)
The plan presents a comparison of Beachwood Farm across different features, over the period from 1960 to present.
What stands out from the data is the contrasting pattern between sheep and camping field, with the former area large area covered and the latter development of solar panels. Equally noteworthy is that road remained unchanged in both layouts.
At the beginning, sheep accounted for large area, compared with trees and tents for camping field followed by Solar panels and parking. Over the following field, track is replaced by road, connecting main road to park.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 4.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 4.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 4.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 4.0
The student has failed to meet the minimum length requirement, writing only 93 words instead of the required 150 words. Consequently, the response is severely underdeveloped and can only address the task in a minimal way. While the student attempts to make some comparisons, such as noting the change from sheep to camping and solar panels, the description is far too brief to provide a fully rounded overview or report the main features accurately. For instance, the year is incorrectly cited as 1960 rather than 1950, and key developments like the holiday cottages and farm shop are completely omitted. This performance aligns with the Band 4 descriptor.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 4.5
The text is organized into brief paragraphs, but the overall progression is difficult to follow due to the extreme brevity of the response. The student attempts to use introductory framing such as 'What stands out from the data is...', but cohesive devices are used clumsily or inaccurately, as seen in phrases like 'Over the following field, track is replaced by road'. Furthermore, referencing is weak and confusing in places. While there is a basic attempt to structure an introduction and body, the lack of substantive content prevents a higher score, placing it firmly at Band 4.5.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.0
The vocabulary used is basic and repetitive, severely constrained by the short length of the text. The student uses simple terms like 'data', 'area', and 'road', alongside some awkward collocations or lexical errors such as 'large area covered' and 'development of solar panels'. There are noticeable inaccuracies in word choice, and the range is barely adequate for the task. Because the vocabulary lacks precision and variety, it restricts the communication of ideas, fitting the Band 5 descriptor.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The response contains a very limited range of sentence structures, relying heavily on simple sentences and awkward clause combinations. There are noticeable grammatical errors and awkward phrasings, such as 'with the former area large area covered' and 'road remained unchanged' (missing articles). While some basic sentences are grammatically acceptable, attempts at more complex structures are faulty and frequent errors occur relative to the small amount of text produced, making Band 5.0 an appropriate descriptor.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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