Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-08-26

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 map plans illustrate a college canteen before and after reshaped.

Overall, one of the major changes is a Barbecue with outdoor seating introduced and a staff dining room also rearranged. While the Salad bar was removed, with a small changing in kitchen.

In the East and North side of canteen, a noticeable conversion of staff dinning rooms into Take away food and Coffee bar seen with recycling bins occupying a larger area than before. Furthermore, serving area in the kitchen converted into Hot meals, whereas structure of kitchen is unchanged. However, the plan of Tables and chairs in the middle of canteen with toilets are same as like before.

The South showed a significant change with a Barbecue made outside of the canteen alongside with a outdoor seating. Moreover, a out door and in door has formed towards barbecue. Whereas, Salad bar totally removed in the West side of canteen.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response identifies the main features of the cafe redesign, such as the addition of the barbecue and the conversion of the staff dining room. However, the overview is somewhat weak, and the description of the changes lacks precision. For instance, the mention of 'a small changing in kitchen' is vague, and the report fails to clearly contrast the 'before' and 'after' states in a way that highlights the overall transformation effectively. While all parts of the task are addressed, the development of the information is limited, and some details are presented in a slightly disjointed manner, which prevents a higher score.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organised into paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the structure. However, the use of cohesive devices is often mechanical or inaccurate. Phrases like 'In the East and North side of canteen' and 'The South showed a significant change' are used to transition, but the internal flow within paragraphs is sometimes choppy. Referencing is occasionally unclear, such as in the final paragraph where 'a out door and in door has formed' is grammatically confusing and lacks a clear antecedent. The progression of ideas is present but could be smoother with more varied linking words.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The range of vocabulary is adequate for the task but lacks sophistication. There are several instances of awkward word choice and collocation errors, such as 'before and after reshaped' (should be 'before and after the redesign') and 'small changing' (should be 'small change'). The term 'dinning' is a spelling error for 'dining'. While the student attempts to use specific terms like 'recycling bins' and 'coffee bar', the overall lexical control is limited, and the repetition of basic structures hinders the ability to convey information with precision.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The response contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors that occasionally impede clarity. Examples include 'Coffee bar seen' (missing auxiliary verb), 'structure of kitchen is unchanged' (missing article), and 'same as like before' (redundant phrasing). Subject-verb agreement and article usage are inconsistent throughout the text. While the meaning is generally understandable, the frequency of these errors prevents the writing from reaching a higher band, as the control over complex structures is not yet consistent or accurate.

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