Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · 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 5.5)
The map below illustrates a college cafe before and after it underwent renovation.
Overall, the cafe was restructured to become more accessible with separate sections for barbecue, outdoor seating, coffee and salad bar and take away.
Before redesigned there was a serving area just beneath the kitchen the new model restricted that for hot meals. Additionally the general bins were replaced with recycling bins and the two staff dining rooms were converted into makeshift coffee bar and take away food area.
After modification, some new sections were also included in the cafe such as the salad bar at the peripheral area and a barbecue corner outside of the cafe boundaries.
There was also a six and four seaters outdoor seating arrangement added just in front of the barbecue corner. the kitchen , toilets and indoor seating area didn't go under any change before and after the re-modelling of 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 candidate covers all parts of the task by reporting the main features of the college cafe before and after the redesign, including the kitchen, serving area changes, seating, and outdoor additions. An overview is successfully provided in the second sentence, outlining the general restructuring. However, there are minor inaccuracies in reporting the data; for example, the description of the outdoor seating as 'six and four seaters' is not entirely precise based on the visual plan. Nevertheless, the comparisons are generally clear and the key transformations are adequately highlighted, meeting the requirements for a Band 6.5 or 6 descriptor profile where relevant ideas are presented.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The response has a coherent overall arrangement with a clear division into an introductory overview and subsequent body details regarding the changes. Cohesive devices are used to guide the reader through the transformations, such as 'Before redesigned', 'Additionally', and 'After modification'. However, paragraphing is somewhat weak, as the entire text is essentially grouped into a single block following the introduction, and referencing is occasionally clunky (e.g., 'the new model restricted that for hot meals'). Paragraphing needs to be more structured to separate distinct spatial areas or temporal changes for a higher band score.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully incorporating terms related to architectural changes like 'restructured', 'renovation', 'converted', and 'peripheral area'. There are, however, some noticeable word choice and collocation errors, such as 'Before redesigned' (instead of 'Before being redesigned') and 'makeshift coffee bar'. Furthermore, spelling and phrasing could be more precise. The vocabulary is minimally adequate to convey the message, but lexical control is inconsistent, placing it firmly at the Band 6 level.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, utilizing passive structures ('were replaced', 'were converted') and introductory adverbial clauses ('Before redesigned there was...'). Grammatical errors and punctuation slips are noticeable throughout the text, including missing articles ('the kitchen , toilets and indoor seating area'), awkward phrasing ('didn't go under any change' instead of 'did not undergo any changes'), and punctuation errors like spacing before commas. While these errors do not severely impede communication, they occur frequently enough to prevent the grammar score from reaching Band 7.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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