Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-08-04

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The plans below show a college cafe before it was redesigned and how it looks now.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

The plans below show a college cafe before it was redesigned and how it looks now.

Student answer (Band 5.5)

The following picture shows the design planned for a college cafeteria. This illustrates the comparision of college cafe before and after renovations.

Overall, it can be seen from the picture that the college cafe was smaller in size. Some additional feactures are also added to the new plan.

Additionally, it is clear that the kitchen area of severing food and drink is now replace with the area of hot meals. Also, the other corner of the kitchen were rooms for staff dining which is now replaced with the place for Take away food and Coffee bar.

Moreover, the Salad bar and Barbecue areas are the additional points which are design inside and outside of the cafe respectively. The new design plan now have better seating area outside of the cafe, in which set of chairs and tables are arranged for the students. However, there is also two new enterance from the side of Toilets and Barbecue section.

Bin is also replaced with Recycling bins.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response covers the main features of the cafe redesign, including the kitchen, seating, and new additions like the salad bar. However, the description is somewhat mechanical and lacks a clear, analytical overview. While the main changes are identified, the comparison could be more sophisticated by grouping features more logically rather than listing them sequentially. The mention of 'two new entrances' is a good observation, but the overall summary is a bit basic. To reach a higher band, ensure the overview highlights the most significant transformations rather than just listing individual changes.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The response is organized into paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the information. However, the use of cohesive devices is somewhat repetitive and occasionally mechanical, such as the frequent use of 'Also' and 'Moreover'. The logical progression between sentences is sometimes disjointed, particularly when moving from the kitchen area to the salad bar and then to the seating. While the paragraphing is sufficient, the flow could be improved by using a wider variety of linking words and ensuring that each paragraph has a clear thematic focus.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

The vocabulary is adequate for the task, allowing the student to describe the changes clearly. There are some spelling errors, such as 'feactures' instead of 'features', 'severing' instead of 'serving', and 'enterance' instead of 'entrance'. While these do not impede communication, they indicate a need for more careful proofreading. The range of vocabulary is somewhat limited; using more precise terms related to architectural changes or spatial layout would enhance the quality of the response.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The response uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors. For example, 'kitchen area of severing food... is now replace' should be 'is now replaced', and 'there is also two new enterance' should be 'there are also two new entrances'. These errors are noticeable but do not prevent the reader from understanding the intended meaning. To improve, the student should focus on subject-verb agreement and consistent tense usage when describing the 'before' and 'after' states.

See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.

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