Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-10-06
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 maps illustrate the changes that have taken place at beechwood farm between 1950 and the present day.
Overall, the farm has undergone significant development it has changed from a mainly agricultural area into a more modan and tourist-friendly place,with new facilities such as a camping field solar panels parking areas a farm shop and holiday cottages. However, some original features have remained.
in, 1950 the northern part of the farm was used for sheep grazing. There were also fields for fruit trees,soft fruits and vegetables in the westen and southern parts.A barn and a farmhouse were located on the ealstern side, while chickens were kept nearby. The farm was connected by several tracks, and a river ran along the western and southem boundaries.
Today,the sheep field has been replaced by a camping area and solar panal, with two parking areas added neaeby. The old tracks have been upgraded into roads.The farmhouse and chicken area have remained in their original locations.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5
The response covers the main developments between the two maps, noting the transition from agricultural land to tourism and leisure facilities such as holiday cottages and a camping field, alongside surviving features like the farmhouse and barn. However, the overview is somewhat brief, and certain details are under-developed or imprecise, such as missing the specific location of the holiday cottages or misdescribing parts of the site layout. To reach a higher band, the response should provide a more fully developed overview and select and compare key features with greater precision and depth.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0
The response presents a coherent overall arrangement with a clear attempt at paragraphing, separating the introduction, overview, past layout, and present layout. However, logical progression and cohesion are occasionally hindered by mechanical or faulty punctuation and referencing, such as missing spaces after commas and periods (e.g., 'today,the', 'trees,soft', 'parts.A'). Cohesive devices are used in a basic manner rather than flexibly. To improve, the writer should ensure smooth transitions between sentences, accurate spacing, and clearer referencing throughout the text.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.5
The vocabulary used is minimally adequate for the task, successfully employing basic descriptive terms related to farming and land use such as 'agricultural area', 'fruit trees', and 'barn'. There are also attempts at less common vocabulary like 'tourist-friendly' and 'significant development'. However, the response contains noticeable spelling errors ('modan' instead of modern, 'ealstern' instead of eastern, 'panal' instead of panel) and awkward word choices or collocations. To achieve a higher score, the student needs to expand their lexical range and eliminate basic spelling and word-form inaccuracies.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5
The response demonstrates a limited range of sentence structures, relying heavily on simple sentences alongside a few basic attempts at complex forms. There are frequent errors in punctuation, particularly missing spaces after punctuation marks and run-on sentences with missing conjunctions, such as 'significant development it has changed'. Errors also occur in articles and prepositions (e.g., 'in, 1950', 'on the ealstern side'). While these errors do not completely obscure the message, they cause some difficulty for the reader. Greater structural variety and improved punctuation accuracy are needed for higher bands.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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