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 illustrate the layout of a farm in 1950 and how the same site has changed to its present-day arrangement.
Overall, The farm undergone significant changes over the period including the removal of walking track and change the position of the Barn. Also some changes were done by adding a Farm shop, Holiday cottages,Solar panels,another Parking facility and the camping field.
In 1950, Beechwood farm were present on the north side of the Road and a river were passing from the East side of the farm. North-west side of the farm contain sheep area and theres was a walking track. Along the other side of this track, a fruit tress,soft fruits and vegtables portion was present,in the North-east corner, a Barn,Farmhouse and chickens portion was placed.
Today,the Farm contain remarkable changes. Solar panels were instaleed in the North-west upper corner,beside them Camping field and a parking facility along the other side of the road. The walking track replaced with a road. and on the right of the Fruit trees a farm shop is opened. Barn position has been replaced. Holiday cottages is present instead of the older Barn .overall ambience is good.
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 candidate attempts to summarise the main features of the maps, noting the removal of the walking track, the addition of the farm shop, holiday cottages, solar panels, and camping field, as well as changes to the barn's position. However, there are several inaccuracies in spatial relationships and locations compared to the visual data. For example, the student states that Beechwood farm was 'on the north side of the Road and a river were passing from the East side', whereas the river flows through the west and south. Additionally, solar panels are placed in the north-west rather than the north-east. While an overview is attempted, these spatial misreadings limit the precision of the response.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5
The text is divided into logical paragraphs separating the introduction, overview, and specific details for 1950 and today. However, progression is sometimes hindered by abrupt transitions and mechanical cohesive devices. For instance, sentences are occasionally disjointed, such as 'The walking track replaced with a road. and on the right of the Fruit trees a farm shop is opened.' Referencing is also occasionally unclear or repetitive, leading to a choppy flow that falls short of higher band criteria.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.0
The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary relevant to the maps, such as 'layout', 'significant changes', 'holiday cottages', and 'solar panels'. However, there are notable spelling and word choice errors throughout the text, including 'The farm undergone', 'instaleed', 'vegtables', and 'tress'. Less common lexical items are attempted but lack precision or accurate collocation, such as 'overall ambience is good', which is inappropriate for an academic task report. This places the lexical performance firmly at Band 5.0.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0
The response exhibits a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, though control is inconsistent. There are frequent grammatical errors, such as subject-verb agreement issues ('Beechwood farm were present', 'a river were passing'), missing auxiliary verbs ('Solar panels were instaleed', 'Holiday cottages is present'), and incorrect passive voice construction ('The walking track replaced with a road'). Punctuation errors, such as missing spaces after periods and unnecessary comma splices, also detract from the overall accuracy, restricting the score to Band 5.0.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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