Band 4.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 4.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-13
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 4.5)
The plan show college cafe before the modification and after the some modification.
the map of cake redesigning before and after has many obvious changes. After the modification cafe have more spacious than before. there is two staff dining room which is change into two room take away food conner and coffee bar after the redesigning the cafe . Salad bar is also added in the cafe which is not before. Serving area change into hot meal area. Barbecue area also added which is more needed in the cafe and also have some place in the barbecue area where more costumers can sit. There is more space in the cafe also have outside sitting area. After redesigning there is more 05 table in the cafe . The bin have been extended and it is renamed as Recycling bin. The cafe after redesigning looks more practical than before.
Further on multiple entries have been added in a way that they are near by to specific section without just moving around through the whole cafe.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 4.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 4.0 |
| Overall | 4.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0
The student attempts to summarise the main features of the two maps showing the college cafe before and after redesigning. Several key changes are identified, such as the addition of a salad bar, barbecue area, recycling bins, and the conversion of the staff dining room into a takeaway food corner and coffee bar. However, the response lacks a clear overview, which is a crucial requirement for Academic Task 1. Furthermore, some details are slightly inaccurate or vague, such as stating that 'there is more 05 table in the cafe' rather than focusing on broader spatial changes and structural reallocation. While the key features are generally addressed, the lack of an overarching summary and a tendency to list minor points rather than selecting and comparing main trends firmly places this response at Band 5.0.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 4.0
The text suffers significantly from poor paragraphing and a lack of logical organisation. The entire response is presented in a fragmented manner, starting with disconnected sentences and lacking clear cohesive progression between ideas. Cohesive devices are very basic, repetitive, or missing entirely, making the flow choppy (e.g., repeating phrases like 'After the modification' and 'after the redesigning the cafe'). Referencing is also confusing at times, such as 'which is not before'. There is no clear overall progression from general trends to specific details, resulting in a disjointed structure. This performance aligns closely with the Band 4.0 descriptors for Coherence and Cohesion.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.0
The vocabulary used is very basic and repetitive, frequently relying on simple words like 'cafe', 'area', and 'change'. There are noticeable lexical inaccuracies and awkward word choices, such as 'take away food conner' (corner), 'more costumers can sit', and 'more 05 table'. The student attempts some task-specific vocabulary related to the visual prompt, such as 'redesigning', 'modification', and 'recycling bin', but the overall range is quite limited. Spelling and word-formation errors, while not completely impeding understanding, occur frequently enough to restrict the score. This demonstrates a limited but minimally adequate range of vocabulary corresponding to a Band 5.0.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 4.0
The grammatical range is extremely limited, consisting mostly of simple sentences or faulty attempts at complex structures. There are frequent grammatical and punctuation errors throughout the text. Examples include subject-verb agreement issues ('The plan show', 'cafe have more spacious', 'The bin have been extended'), missing articles ('The plan show college cafe', 'Salad bar is also added'), and awkward prepositional usage ('in a way that they are near by to specific section'). These persistent errors often cause strain for the reader and demonstrate poor control over basic sentence patterns. This reflects a Band 4.0 level of grammatical accuracy and range.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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