Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-04
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 diagrams below depict information about the cafe before and after its refurbishment.
Overall, it is clear that there are many new developments have been done in cafe. They have replaced many previous facilities with new names and shape.
Previously, the cafe had a kitchen in the far side and below it there was a serving area, where everyone came and eat food. Adjacent to it cafe had a pair of dinning rooms with a central dinning table in each room. There were few chairs and tables in the middle of cafe.. There was a row of toilets in south west side of the cafe near the trash bin.
Presently, kitchen has placed at the same place as previously, while the serving area has changed into a hot meals area. On the other hand, staff dinning rooms are changed into a take away section and a cafe, while the tables and chairs and toilets remained at their place as in the old cafe. The trash bin is now changed into a recycle bin. A new barbecue section has added in the outside of the cafe with out door seating. These are totally new addition in the cafe.
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 kitchen, seating, and the addition of the barbecue area. However, the analysis is somewhat descriptive rather than analytical. For instance, while you mention the kitchen remains in the same place, you could have more effectively highlighted the spatial reorganization of the dining areas. The overview is a bit weak; it states 'many new developments have been done' but lacks a summary of the most significant changes, such as the shift from dining rooms to a take-away section. To reach a higher band, ensure the overview synthesizes the key trends rather than just listing changes.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, moving from an introduction to a description of the 'before' state, and finally the 'after' state. Cohesive devices are used, such as 'Previously', 'Presently', and 'On the other hand'. However, some transitions feel slightly mechanical, and the referencing is occasionally unclear (e.g., 'in cafe' without an article). The progression of ideas is generally clear, but the flow between sentences could be improved by using a wider variety of linking phrases to better connect the comparison of the two plans.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The vocabulary is adequate for the task but lacks precision and variety. You use basic terms like 'new names and shape' and 'in the same place'. There are also some minor errors in word choice and collocation, such as 'dinning rooms' (should be 'dining rooms') and 'in the outside of the cafe' (should be 'outside the cafe'). To improve, try to incorporate more specific vocabulary related to spatial descriptions, such as 'relocated', 'transformed', 'converted', or 'adjacent to'.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
There is a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but accuracy is inconsistent. There are several grammatical errors, including missing articles ('in cafe', 'in the far side'), incorrect verb forms ('kitchen has placed' instead of 'the kitchen has been placed'), and preposition errors ('in the outside'). While these errors do not completely impede communication, they occur frequently enough to lower the score. Focusing on subject-verb agreement and the correct use of articles would significantly improve the clarity and professionalism of your writing.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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