Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-08-18
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 given plan demonstrates about how a college cafe seems before and after renovation.
Overall, the plans shows significant changes in the structure of college cafe. There were only a few facilties and now many more spots are installed in the same area of cafe to facilitate students.
The kitchen is located on the left side with a serving area in it while on the right side are staff dining rooms behind that tables and chairs are arranged for students. In addition, bins are installed on the right side of the cafe for waste management beside that toilets are present. In kitchen the serving area is replaced with hot meals and a new salad bar is installed on the opposite side of the recysle bins. The dining rooms are replaced with two separate areas named as take away food and coffee bar, and the tables and chairs are in the same place as they were before. Futhermore, a barbecue shop is constructed behind the kitchen in a open area along with that outdoor seatings are well arranged to make more space for sitting.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The response covers the main features of the renovation, such as the addition of the barbecue area and the changes to the kitchen and dining facilities. However, the description is somewhat cluttered and lacks a clear, analytical overview. While the prompt asks for a summary of the main features and comparisons, the student focuses heavily on listing locations rather than synthesizing the information. The overview is quite basic, and some details, such as the specific placement of the salad bar or the 'recysle' bins, are described in a way that is slightly confusing to follow without a clear spatial reference point.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The essay is organized into two paragraphs, which is acceptable, but the internal flow is somewhat mechanical. The use of cohesive devices like 'In addition', 'Futhermore', and 'along with that' is present but often feels repetitive or slightly forced. The progression of ideas is logical in terms of moving through the cafe, but the lack of clear paragraph breaks between the overview and the body makes the text feel dense. Referencing is generally clear, but the transition between the 'before' and 'after' states could be smoother to better highlight the changes.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The vocabulary is adequate for the task but lacks variety and precision. There are several spelling errors, such as 'facilties' and 'recysle', and some awkward phrasing like 'spots are installed' or 'barbecue shop is constructed'. While the student uses some relevant terms like 'renovation' and 'management', the range is limited. The student relies on basic verbs like 'is' and 'are' throughout the description, which prevents the writing from sounding more sophisticated or descriptive. More precise verbs related to spatial changes would improve the score.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The response contains a mix of simple and some complex sentence structures. However, there are frequent grammatical errors, such as 'The given plan demonstrates about how' (incorrect preposition), 'the plans shows' (subject-verb agreement), and 'in a open area' (article error). Punctuation is also inconsistent, particularly with the lack of commas in long, complex sentences, which makes some parts difficult to read. While the meaning is generally clear, the frequency of these minor errors prevents the response from reaching a higher band.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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