Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-08-29
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 plans compare the layout of the college cafe from its previous design to its current layout.
Overall, the cafe underwent significant changes such as serving area was replaced with hot meals area, staff dining rooms also replaced by take away food and coffee bar. In contrast, some areas remained unchanged for instance, toilets and recycling bins. while outdoor seating, barbecue and salad bar were added to the cafe layout.
The cafe before redesign, there were two staff dining rooms near the serving area of all food and drink. Mainly there were only 6 places which make the cafe complete namely, kitchen which was located in the backyard of the cafe, serving area after the kitchen, then seating area and in the end of the cafe there were one bin and toilets.
Today, the college cafe changed in many ways such as added new areas, mainly the outdoor seating which make the cafe more special for the youngsters. Moreover, cafe replaced the staff dining rooms with take away food and coffee bar. Also, changed the name of serving area with hot meals and added more places such as, salad bar and barbecue.
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 cafe redesign, including the removal of staff dining rooms and the addition of new facilities like the salad bar and outdoor seating. However, the description is somewhat repetitive and lacks a clear, analytical overview of the spatial changes. While the key features are identified, the comparison between the 'before' and 'after' states is occasionally muddled by awkward phrasing, such as 'serving area was replaced with hot meals area'. To reach a higher band, ensure that the overview synthesizes the information more effectively rather than simply listing changes in a fragmented manner.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The essay is organized into paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the structure. However, the use of cohesive devices is often mechanical or inaccurate. For example, the sentence 'The cafe before redesign, there were two...' lacks a proper introductory preposition, and the transition 'In contrast, some areas remained unchanged for instance, toilets and recycling bins' is grammatically disjointed. The flow between sentences is occasionally interrupted by these structural errors, making the progression of ideas feel somewhat forced rather than natural. Improving the variety and accuracy of linking words would significantly enhance the coherence.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, allowing the student to describe the layout changes clearly. There is some attempt to use specific terminology like 'layout', 'redesign', and 'facilities'. However, there are instances of imprecise word choice, such as 'make the cafe complete' and 'make the cafe more special for the youngsters', which sound unnatural in an academic context. The repetition of 'areas' and 'places' limits the range of vocabulary. To improve, the student should focus on using more precise collocations and avoiding informal phrasing.
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 the flow. Issues include missing articles ('the' toilets), incorrect verb forms ('cafe replaced the staff dining rooms'), and punctuation errors, such as the run-on sentence structure in the second paragraph. While the meaning is generally clear, the frequency of these errors prevents the writing from reaching a higher band. Focusing on subject-verb agreement and the correct use of articles would lead to more accurate and professional-sounding sentences.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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