Band 4.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 4.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-17

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 two maps illustrates a college cafe before it was revamp and how it looks at the present.

Overall, in the past, kitchen are upper side and massive area for the tables and chairs and toilets are the corner side. At now, kitchen and hot meal are upper side barbecue are the left side below the table and chairs area.

In the past,kitchen and serving area (all food and drink) are upper side and staff dining rooms in the open area beside the table and chairs. In addition, Bin are the left side of the map and toilets are the corner.

Curentlly, kitchen are the same area and the serving area are change to hot meal and the staff dining room are change to take away food and coffe bar inside made salad bar and bin area are change to recyclling bins. Barbecue have made south side as well as outdoor seating area are also made at now.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0

The response attempts to cover the main features of the two maps comparing the college cafe before and after the redesign. Key changes are mentioned, such as the transformation of staff dining rooms into a take away food area and coffee bar, the addition of a salad bar, outdoor seating, and a barbecue. However, the overview is extremely basic and lacks clarity. Furthermore, there are noticeable inaccuracies in reporting locations, such as stating that 'bin are the left side' when they are on the east wall, and the description lacks the level of organization and detailed comparison expected for an Academic Task 1 response. It addresses the prompt minimally, placing it within the Band 5 category.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 4.0

The text is organized into rudimentary paragraphs attempting an introduction, an overview, and body paragraphs. However, the logical progression is weak due to disjointed sentences and poor cohesion. Transition phrases are either missing or misused, such as starting paragraphs with abrupt temporal markers like 'At now' and 'Curentlly'. Referencing and logical linking between sentences are inadequate, making the progression difficult to follow at times. Paragraphing is attempted but lacks effective structure and flow. These weaknesses align with the Band 4 descriptors for Coherence and Cohesion.

Lexical Resource — Band 4.0

The vocabulary used is very basic, repetitive, and heavily relies on lifting terms directly from the prompt or visual data (e.g., 'college cafe', 'kitchen', 'tables and chairs', 'toilets'). There are numerous word-choice and form errors throughout the text, such as 'revamp' instead of 'revamped', 'Curentlly' instead of 'Currently', and awkward phrasing like 'barbecue have made south side'. The range of vocabulary is limited and strained, which occasionally causes confusion for the reader, fitting the Band 4 descriptor profile.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 4.0

The grammatical structures attempted are very limited and heavily flawed. There is a complete lack of control over basic verb tenses, agreements, and prepositions, as seen in examples like 'The two maps illustrates' (subject-verb agreement error), 'kitchen are upper side' (missing copula/articles), and 'the serving area are change' (passive voice and tense errors). Complex structures are virtually absent, and basic sentences frequently contain errors that impede smooth reading and distort meaning. This performance corresponds to a Band 4 level.

See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.

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