Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-09-28
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 plans displays the site of a farm in 1950 and the same site today. They have made some of the changes in todays site.
Overall, the farm in 1950 was according to that era, simple and straight-forward. But the same site of farm have been modernized. This includes many changes like of separation of specific parts.
In its earliest iteration, it just had a fruit trees area at this entrance and on the other side of the track there is a place for sheeps. Afterwards, there was a place for soft fruits, vegetables and at the end if the farm there was barn, farmhouse and a separated space for chickens.
In its current state, there is parking at the entrance on one side of road. on the other one, there is a farm shop and beside it there are fruit trees. By moving forward, soft fruits and vegetables have separate spaces. On other side of road, the where sheeps were kept before, now it have camping field.
Moreover, there is one more parking at one end of the farm. Holiday cottages, farmhouse and chickens are settled now in this place. Barn is shifted now between the site.
In conclusion, the site was very spacious that is being used in todays era and developed the site.
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 response addresses the main features of the maps, noting the transition from a traditional agricultural farm to a modernised leisure and commercial site. However, the overview is rather simplistic, stating only that the farm has been 'modernised'. Some details are inaccurate or confusingly reported, such as claiming the holiday cottages, farmhouse, and chickens are now settled at the 'eastern end' when they occupy the central-eastern part, and misinterpreting the relocated barn. While the main comparisons are present, such as the replacement of sheep fields with a camping site and the addition of a farm shop and holiday cottages, the development of ideas is limited and contains minor misinterpretations of the visual data. This places the response in Band 5.5 to 6.0; Band 6 is appropriate as it presents an overview with relevant main features highlighted, despite some under-development.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5
The text is arranged into logical paragraphs, beginning with an introduction, moving to an overall statement, describing the 1950 layout, detailing the current layout, and concluding. Progression is generally clear as the reader is guided across the spatial layout from entrance to the back of the farm. However, cohesive devices are somewhat mechanical and repetitive (e.g., 'In its earliest iteration', 'In its current state', 'Moreover'), and referencing is occasionally vague, such as 'on the other one' or 'now it have camping field'. Paragraphing is used sufficiently to separate the historical period from the present day, supporting an overall coherent arrangement that satisfies the criteria for Band 6.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.5
The student attempts some less common vocabulary relevant to maps and changes, such as 'modernised', 'iteration', and 'relocated' (though 'shifted' is used). However, there are notable word choice and collocation issues, such as 'The plans displays' instead of 'display', 'at the end if the farm' instead of 'at the far end', and awkward phrasing like 'settled now in this place'. Spelling is generally acceptable, but vocabulary control is limited and repetitive. The range of vocabulary is adequate for the task, allowing the student to communicate the main changes, but frequent minor lexical inaccuracies keep the score at Band 5.5, rounded to 6.0 for adequate communication.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0
The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, but grammatical control is inconsistent. There are several noticeable errors, such as subject-verb agreement issues ('The plans displays', 'now it have camping field'), article omissions ('a fruit trees area', 'at entrance'), and preposition misuse ('at the end if the farm', 'on other side of road'). While these errors do not completely impede communication, they occur frequently enough to prevent the response from achieving a higher band. Complex structures are attempted but often contain minor flaws. This performance aligns well with the Band 5.0 descriptors, where a limited range of structures is evident and frequent errors cause some difficulty.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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