Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-14
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 5.0)
The diagram illustrates two plans that show the before and the after desgin of a college cafe .
Overall, in this map we can see major modernization and expansions during redesign the cafe. we can see the six major changes in the map after relocate the map.
Firstly, there was no outdoor seating before the map redesigning while we see the outdoor seating that added to the map after design. Staff dinning rooms replaced with the take away food and coffee bar that were made for public. Look at west side the toilets and recycling bin remain on the same place.
Secondly, serving area all food and drinks changed with hot meal section. The salad bar section added in map after redesgin the cafe that are west side of the map. Although, look at the central hall where the tables and chairs are in the mid of the map that are also on the same place. After redesigning the cafe the barbecue portion attached to the north-west side but kitchen also at the same place.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0
The candidate attempts to summarise the main features of the two plans depicting the college cafe before and after redesign. While some key changes are mentioned, such as the addition of outdoor seating and a hot meal section, the response suffers from significant inaccuracies in reporting and spatial description. For instance, stating that 'kitchen also at the same place' or that the 'toilets and recycling bin remain on the same place' is confusing and partially inaccurate when reading the visual data. The overview is weak and repetitive, stating 'we can see the six major changes' without properly outlining them. Overall, the response addresses the task partially, with some underdeveloped and unclear descriptions, aligning with a band 5.0.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0
The response is organised into brief paragraphs, starting with an introduction and followed by body paragraphs attempting to use sequencing markers like 'Firstly' and 'Secondly'. However, the logical progression is frequently disrupted by awkward phrasing and poor referencing, such as 'after relocate the map' and 'Look at west side'. Cohesive devices are sometimes inaccurate or awkward, leading to a mechanical and disjointed reading experience. Paragraphing is attempted, but internal cohesion within sentences is weak, preventing the response from reaching a higher band. These characteristics correspond to a band 5.0.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.0
The vocabulary used is basic and repetitive, frequently relying on simple words and phrases like 'the same place', 'map', and 'redesign the cafe'. There are notable spelling and word-choice errors, such as 'desgin' instead of 'design', 'dinning' instead of 'dining', and awkward collocations like 'serving area all food and drinks changed with hot meal section'. While the candidate attempts some less common terms like 'modernization', 'expansions', and 'barbecue', the inaccuracies in word choice and spelling cause noticeable strain for the reader, placing the lexical range firmly at band 5.0.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The writer uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but attempts at complex clauses are frequently faulty and ungrammatical. Examples include 'there was no outdoor seating before the map redesigning while we see the outdoor seating that added to the map after design' and sentences missing necessary auxiliary verbs or subjects, such as 'that are west side of the map'. Frequent errors in prepositions, article usage, and verb forms (e.g., 'tables and chairs... that are also on the same place') cause difficulty and confusion for the reader, which is characteristic of band 5.0 grammar.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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