Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-19
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)
It is an old and updated map layout of college cafe. The modified version is the cafe of today which is redesigned from the old one. The new look of cafe is liked by the students beacuse of its outdoor seating which was not in the old one. The staff don't like much the updated cafeteria because its not having the seperate place for them but overall everyone enjoying the new things like coffee bar, salad bar, barbecue corner and the seperate section for the hot meals. The same things in both old and new cafe are the middle tables and chairs, toilets, and kitchen.
In the old cafeteria all food was served from only one place so it was really difficult for all the students and staff to manage in a short break. Now its very convenient for everyone to have the desired stuff from the particular stall of the food. The outdoor seating is really giving cafe a modren and eye-catching look. Another good addition is of recycling bins as in old cafe there was a bin only. So overall, the new design of cafeteria is way better from the old one.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0
The response attempts to summarise the changes shown in the two maps, identifying key features such as the addition of the outdoor seating, barbecue area, salad bar, and coffee bar, alongside persistent features like the kitchen and toilets. However, the candidate spends a significant portion of the text discussing subjective opinions about student and staff feelings ('The new look of cafe is liked by the students... The staff don't like much the updated cafeteria'), which is inappropriate for an Academic Task 1 response where an objective summary of visual data is required. While the main features are touched upon, the lack of an introductory overview and the inclusion of speculative, non-factual commentary prevent the score from reaching a higher band. It partially satisfies the requirements of the task.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The essay is divided into two brief paragraphs. There is an attempt to organise the content logically, moving from general layout changes to specific functional updates (such as the outdoor seating and recycling bins). However, the progression is disjointed due to the informal and narrative style. Cohesive devices are basic and sometimes repetitive ('So overall', 'Another good addition'), and referencing is occasionally unclear. Paragraphing is rudimentary. While the text is readable, the lack of sophisticated signposting and logical transitions places it firmly in the mid-range for cohesion.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.0
The vocabulary used is fairly basic and repetitive, with frequent misspellings ('beacuse', 'seperate', 'modren') and informal phrasing ('desired stuff'). The student does attempt some task-specific vocabulary related to the visual data, such as 'cafeteria', 'salad bar', 'coffee bar', and 'recycling bins', but the range is limited. Word choice is sometimes unnatural, and inaccuracies in spelling and collocations are noticeable throughout the text, causing some minor distraction for the reader. The lexical range is adequate for basic communication but lacks the precision expected at higher bands.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The response features a mix of simple and moderately complex sentence structures (e.g., relative clauses and passive forms like 'was redesigned'). However, there are frequent grammatical errors, particularly with subject-verb agreement and article usage ('its not having', 'the old cafe there was a bin only', 'from only one place'). Punctuation is generally acceptable, but missing apostrophes ('its') and spelling slips weaken the overall grammatical accuracy. While communication is not severely impeded, the frequency of basic errors prevents the score from exceeding a 5.0.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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