Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-10-01
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 site of a Beechwood Farm in 1950 and the same site today.
Overall, it is clear that the beechwood farm has changed considerably with the introduction of tourism and eight new features that can be seen in second diagram. The main development is that now visitors can do camping and stay in holiday cottages.
Looking at the plans in more detail, farm shop is added next to fruit trees. Soft fruits and vegetables remained same as before. Track has been changed to road and barn is also added to the south east side. The other physical structures that have been added are holiday cottages, in the east side and a parking to the opposite side of holiday cottages.
As well as buildings mentioned above, Sheep now has been separated into two side, one side is for first parking and camping field, where another side is for solar panels and second parking.
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 task partially and attempts to present an overview, noting that Beechwood Farm has changed with the introduction of tourism and new features. However, the details provided are limited and under-developed. For example, while the writer mentions that a 'farm shop is added next to fruit trees' and that 'soft fruits and vegetables remained same', the reporting of features is somewhat disjointed and lacks precise spatial relationships. The description of the northern area previously used for 'Sheep' is confusingly expressed as being 'separated into two side', overlooking key details such as the camping field and solar panels. To reach a higher level, the response needs a more fully developed overview and a clearer, more comprehensive selection and comparison of the main features across both plans.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5
The essay displays some overall organization with an introductory sentence, an overview paragraph, and body paragraphs discussing specific changes. However, there is no clear overall progression, and cohesive devices are sometimes faulty or mechanical. The transition between sentences feels abrupt, as seen in 'Looking at the plans in more detail, farm shop is added...' where missing articles disrupt the flow. Referencing is also occasionally unclear, such as when the writer states 'where another side is for solar panels', which creates confusion regarding the spatial layout of the map. Paragraphing is attempted, but grouping related features more logically and using a wider range of accurate cohesive ties would improve the overall coherence and readability of the response.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.5
The vocabulary used is limited but minimally adequate to communicate the basic transformations on the farm, featuring terms like 'introduction of tourism', 'holiday cottages', and 'solar panels'. However, there are noticeable lexical errors and omissions that affect precision, such as missing articles ('farm shop is added', 'track has been changed to road') and awkward phrasing ('to the opposite side of holiday cottages'). The writer attempts some less common vocabulary related to the map features, but occasional word choice and collocation inaccuracies prevent the response from achieving a higher score. Expanding the range of vocabulary for describing spatial changes and ensuring accurate word formation are key areas for improvement.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0
The response relies on a limited range of sentence structures, mostly simple sentences and basic complex forms, and attempts at more complex structures are often faulty. There are frequent grammatical errors, particularly regarding article use ('in second diagram', 'to road', 'to the east side'), pluralisation ('into two side'), and prepositional patterns. For instance, the sentence 'Sheep now has been separated into two side' contains subject-verb agreement issues and incorrect plural forms. Punctuation and grammatical control need to be strengthened, as these frequent errors can occasionally cause difficulty for the reader and prevent the text from demonstrating a stable mix of accurate complex structures.
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