Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-05
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 diagram illustrate the layout changes in the cafe before and after the redesigned.
Overall, the cafe was transform to improve to manage the clients flow and functionality and expand its menu by adding new items. Initially, the kitchen is main area of any cafe and resturant. It remains the same and no change occured however the area where all the foods and drinks were served tranform into hot meal section.
After redesign, hall was almost entirely change. In the west, cafe authorities contructed salad bar that occupy some space.Furthermore, the staff dinning rooms were switch to take-away food and coffee bar in order to increase variety of commodities in menu.whereas, toilets zone remained untouched and the door on the left of the toilets constructed, and an ordinary bin was replaced with recycling bin to safeguard environment.
Moreover, cafe expanded its area; a barbecue stall and seating zone were added outside, and an additional door was built in the cafe toward 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 redesign, such as the kitchen, the new salad bar, and the outdoor seating area. However, the description is somewhat disjointed and lacks a clear, analytical overview of the most significant changes. While the prompt asks for a summary and comparison, the response focuses on listing individual changes without fully synthesizing the transformation of the space. The mention of the 'recycling bin' is a minor detail that distracts from the main structural features. To improve, ensure the overview highlights the most prominent spatial shifts rather than listing every minor modification.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The essay is organized into paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the progression. However, the use of cohesive devices is sometimes mechanical or inaccurate, such as the awkward transition 'whereas, toilets zone remained untouched'. The referencing is occasionally unclear, making it difficult to visualize the spatial changes described. For instance, the transition between the kitchen area and the hall is abrupt. Improving the flow between sentences using more natural linking phrases would enhance the overall coherence of the report.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, but there are several instances of incorrect word forms and awkward collocations. Examples include 'the cafe was transform' (should be 'transformed'), 'staff dinning rooms were switch' (should be 'switched'), and 'variety of commodities' (which is slightly unnatural in this context). While the student attempts to use specific terminology like 'layout' and 'functionality', the frequent errors in word choice and morphology limit the precision of the description. Expanding the range of descriptive verbs and ensuring correct word forms would lead to a higher score.
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 of reading. Common issues include subject-verb agreement ('The diagram illustrate'), tense inconsistencies ('Initially, the kitchen is main area'), and missing articles ('in the west, cafe authorities contructed salad bar'). While the meaning is generally clear, the high frequency of these errors prevents the writing from reaching a higher band. Focusing on basic sentence construction and proofreading for tense consistency would be highly beneficial.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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