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 GIVEN PLAN ILLUSTRATES A SITE OF FARM NAMED BEECHWOOD FARM IN 1950 AND THE SAME SITE TODAY.

OVERALL, THE SITE SEEMS TO HAVE A HUGE AMOUNT OF SHIFT OVER THE PERIOD OF TIME HOWEVER, RIVER, MAIN ROAD, FRUIT TREES, SOFT FRUITS, VEGETABLES AND FARMHOUSE REMAINS THE SAME WHILE BARN HAS BEEN MOVED SLIGHTLY.

PREDOMINENTLY, SHEEP HAS BEEN SHIFTED TOTALLY AND A NEW CONSTRUCTION OF PARKING LOTS, CAMPING FIELF AND SOLAR PANELS HAS REPLACED IT. MOVING FORWARD, THE TRACK HAS BEEN COMPLETELY TRANSFORMED INTO A ROAD. BARN HAS BEEN MOVED A LITTLE AND IS NOW CONVENIENTLY ACCESSIBLE BY ROAD FROM TWO SIDES. HOLIDAY COTTAGES HAS REPLACED BARN AND CHICKENS ARE NOW AVAILABLE RIGHT NEXT TO THE FARMHOUSE NEAR BARN.

HOWEVER, RIVER, MAIN ROAD, FRUIT TREES, SOFT FRUITS, VEGETABLE REMAINED UNCHANGED WHILE A NEW FARM SHOP IS NOW AVAILABLE AT FRUIT TREES. A MAJOR SHIFT CAN BE SEEN AT SHEEP, A NUMBER OF NEW CONSTRUCTIONS CAN BE EXPERIENCED THERE.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

The response successfully addresses all parts of the task by providing an overview of the changes at Beechwood Farm between 1950 and today. It covers the main features such as the removal of sheep fields, the introduction of parking lots, a camping field, solar panels, holiday cottages, and a farm shop, while noting elements that remained unchanged like the river, main road, and farmhouse. However, some areas are slightly repetitive and under-developed, particularly in the conclusion where information is restated rather than extended. A few words were copied directly from the prompt, but the response successfully meets the minimum length requirement.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

The text demonstrates a coherent overall arrangement with a clear division into an introduction, an overview, and body paragraphs detailing specific changes. However, cohesion is sometimes mechanical and repetitive, with over-use of transition markers such as "PREDOMINENTLY", "MOVING FORWARD", and "HOWEVER". The referencing between paragraphs is occasionally unclear, and the logical progression stalls slightly because information about unchanged and changed features is duplicated across different sections of the text rather than smoothly integrated.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The vocabulary used is adequate for the task, attempting less common terms such as "TRANSFORMED", "CONVENIENTLY ACCESSIBLE", and "CONSTRUCTIONS". However, there are notable spelling errors, such as "PREDOMINENTLY" instead of predominantly and "FIELF" instead of field, as well as minor word choice issues like "huge amount of shift" instead of a significant transformation. While these inaccuracies do not completely impede communication, they restrict the lexical score to the midpoint.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The writing includes a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating some attempts at compound and complex structures. There are, however, several grammatical errors throughout the text, including subject-verb agreement issues like "SHEEP HAS BEEN SHIFTED" and "HOLIDAY COTTAGES HAS REPLACED", incorrect pluralisation such as "VEGETABLE REMAINED", and missing articles. Punctuation is also inconsistent, particularly with the overuse of capitalization. These errors occur frequently enough to occasionally cause difficulty, keeping the grammar score at this level.

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