Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-22

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)

There are two plans of a college cafe. How it looked before and after redesigned.

Overall, there are plenty of changes in the buildings, internal and external areas are transformed completely with much more facilities, fewer things switched from common use to sustainble path.

begin with the centre part of the cafe, Table and chairs remained untouched, toilet stood in the same spot. Whereas, bin is replaced by Recycling bins. Moreover, staff dining rooms are replaced by take away food and a coffee bar next to it. Kitchen had no modification, while serving area only offers hot meals with no drinks.

There is a barbecue located outside of the cafe building with outdoor seating, where there are plenty of tables s

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 4.5

The response fails to meet the minimum word count requirement of 150 words, containing only 121 words, which incurs a penalty under Task Achievement. While the student attempts to summarise the main changes between the two plans—such as the transformation of staff dining rooms into a takeaway food area and coffee bar, the addition of a salad bar, and the introduction of an outdoor seating area with a barbecue—the development is incomplete. The overview is rather vague ('internal and external areas are transformed completely'), and the text cuts off mid-sentence at the end. Consequently, the response addresses the task only partially.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0

The text lacks proper paragraphing, as it consists of a series of disjointed fragments and single sentences rather than cohesive paragraphs. Although the writer attempts some sequencing devices such as 'Overall', 'begin with', and 'Whereas', the overall organization is hampered by abrupt transitions and incomplete thoughts. Referencing and cohesive flow are occasionally faulty, and the lack of a proper conclusion or fully developed body paragraphs prevents the response from achieving a higher band score. The abrupt cut-off at the end further disrupts the logical progression.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The student demonstrates an adequate vocabulary range to describe basic spatial changes, using terms like 'transformed', 'unmodified', 'recycling bins', and 'outdoor seating'. However, there are noticeable lexical inaccuracies and awkward phrasings, such as 'much more facilities' instead of 'many more facilities' and 'fewer things switched from common use to sustainble path', where 'sustainable' is also misspelled. Vocabulary is sometimes repetitive or imprecise, but it remains minimally adequate for the reader to grasp the general meaning of the plan comparisons.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but control is inconsistent. There are several grammatical errors and punctuation issues, such as fragment sentences ('How it looked before and after redesigned.') and missing articles ('Table and chairs remained untouched, toilet stood in the same spot'). The sentence structure often lacks verbs or is awkwardly constructed ('begin with the centre part of the cafe'). While basic meanings are communicated, frequent errors and the incomplete final sentence cause some difficulty for the reader.

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

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