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)
Every cafe needs a change after a certain period of time so that the customers can have some new experiences. According to the need, the cafe's must take appropriate steps to develop their services as well.
Here in the plans of a collage cafe we can see many changes that were made during their renovation period. First and foremost, they used to serve all their foods and drinks from one little counter which might not seem to be a good solution when there is a huge que of customers. So what they did is relocating the salad bar, take away and coffee bar at different counters. It might seem to be a little change but it will produce gigantic changes in the atmosphere in my opinion.
Earlier they used to have a congested seating area for their customers which may feel like a prison and by keeping that in mind they developed a open seating area along with a barbecue zone where the customers may enjoy their evening with their close people if they want. The recycle bin has ben updated and made sure it has larger space so that the wastes get proper finishing line.
In the end, the present cafe looks well polished and makes complete sense that the owner has made changes according to the customers and their demands.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0
The response fails to adopt an objective, analytical tone suitable for an Academic Task 1 report. Instead of focusing on the data, the student includes subjective opinions such as 'which might not seem to be a good solution' and 'makes complete sense'. While the main features are identified, the description is informal and lacks the precise, comparative language required for this task. The inclusion of an introduction and conclusion that focus on personal opinion rather than a summary of the visual data significantly detracts from the task requirements.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The response is organised into paragraphs, but the flow is hindered by the informal, essay-like structure. Cohesive devices are used, such as 'First and foremost' and 'In the end', but they feel somewhat mechanical and do not effectively link the spatial changes described. The progression of ideas is logical enough to follow, but the lack of formal academic signposting makes the report feel disjointed. Referencing is generally clear, but the overall structure is more suited to a personal opinion piece than a data report.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The vocabulary is adequate for the task but lacks the precision and academic register required for a higher band. Phrases like 'gigantic changes', 'prison', and 'proper finishing line' are informal and imprecise in this context. There is an attempt to use topic-specific vocabulary (e.g., 'renovation', 'relocating', 'seating area'), but the overall range is limited. The student relies on general-purpose language rather than the specific descriptive terminology needed to describe architectural or layout changes.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The response contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are several grammatical errors, such as 'the cafe's must take' (incorrect plural/possessive), 'a open seating area' (article error), and 'has ben updated' (spelling error). While these errors do not completely impede communication, they occur frequently enough to suggest a lack of control over more complex structures. Punctuation is generally functional, but the overall accuracy is inconsistent.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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