Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 6.0 · 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 6.0)
The first map illustrates the layout of a college's cafe before the redesigning. The second map shows how this area has developed at the present time.
Overall, the area has undergone with noticeable changes, with the addition of a separate areas allocated for take away food and coffee bar. The major transformation has been in developing the outdoor seating area for students with a Barbecue spot.
In the first map, cafe is shown as simple structure design a small area with so many features includes a hall for students rest area and allocated with tables and chairs where they can sit and enjoy their meals. The kitchen and serving area for all types of food and drink was situated at the north-east side of the cafe. The map depicts a small area for staff dining rooms, along with the space for toilets and bin at the south-east side at that time.
By time, the area has changed significantly with some new spaces. One of the most noticeable changes is the outdoor seating, outdoor sitting area has created with tables and chairs and a corner for barbecue. There are some replacement in the inside of the cafe, Staff sitting room was replaced with a spearate areas for takeaway food and coffee station. Nevertheless, added a salad bar and serving area is now replaced with Hot meals.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 6.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 6.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0
The student successfully summarises the main features of the college cafe before and after its redesign, presenting a clear overview and highlighting key transformations such as the outdoor seating area, barbecue spot, and the addition of the salad bar and takeaway food sections. However, there are some minor inaccuracies in spatial reporting; for instance, the kitchen in the original map was located in the upper-left (north-west) rather than the north-east side, and staff dining rooms were along the north wall rather than the south-east side. Despite these minor geographical misreadings, all parts of the task are addressed with relevant comparisons, earning a solid Band 6.5.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0
The response is structured into logical paragraphs, beginning with an introduction, followed by an overview paragraph, a description of the original layout, and finally the changes made. Cohesive devices such as 'Overall', 'In the first map', and 'By time' are used to guide the reader through the comparison, though phrasing like 'By time' is slightly unnatural and would be better expressed as 'Over time' or 'Subsequently'. Paragraphing is used appropriately, and the overall progression is clear, supporting a Band 6.5 score.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, attempting some less common lexical items such as 'redesigning', 'transformation', and 'recalling specific features'. However, there are notable word choice and collocation errors, such as 'has undergone with noticeable changes', 'simple structure design a small area', and 'Staff sitting room was replaced with a spearate areas'. Spelling slips ('spearate') also occur. These errors do not impede communication, but they restrict the score to a Band 6.0.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The essay displays a mix of simple and complex sentence forms. While the student attempts relative clauses and compound sentences, grammatical control is inconsistent. There are several structural and grammatical errors throughout the text, including missing prepositions, awkward phrasing ('area has undergone with noticeable changes'), and subject-verb agreement issues ('cafe is shown as simple structure design a small area with so many features includes'). Frequent minor errors place this response firmly in the Band 5.5 category.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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