Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-24
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 plan illustrates a college cafe before it was redesigned and how it look today after it renovation.
overall, it is clear that the cafe has been significantely enlarged and modernized.In addition the internal layout has been compeletly recrganized and outdoor siting is added. The most noticeable feature is that the serving area has been expanded into seprate section.
looking first at the end of cafe before redesign, the layout was relatively small and simple.It stood a top of building kitchen is located in north west corner and serving area for self service food and drinks directly below it. the main central area was occupied by tables and chair. the entrance was an the south eastern side.
Turning to the cafe is today many major change has been takenthe kitchen remain north west but new area hot meal has added.The staff dining roon is removed and added take away food and coffee bar.At the end they added a new outdoor seating area moreover added a salad bar and barbecue.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 6.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0
The student successfully addresses the main features of both plans, noting the expansion of the kitchen area, the reorganization of the staff dining rooms into a take-away food and coffee bar, the addition of a salad bar, and the introduction of an outdoor seating area with a barbecue. An overview is provided at the beginning, summarizing the main changes as modernization and expansion. However, some spatial descriptions are slightly vague or contain minor inaccuracies regarding location (e.g., placing the kitchen at the top of the building rather than the upper-left, and slight confusion with directions). Nevertheless, all key transformations are reported adequately, fulfilling the requirements for Band 6.0.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5
The response is organized into an introduction with an overview, followed by separate paragraphs detailing the cafe before redesign and the cafe today. Cohesive devices are attempted (e.g., 'Looking first at', 'Turning to', 'Moreover'), but their use is sometimes mechanical or imprecise. Paragraphing is present, but sentence boundaries are frequently blurred due to capitalization errors, missing periods, and run-on sentences (e.g., 'It stood a top of building kitchen is located...'). While there is a coherent overall arrangement, referencing and punctuation issues disrupt logical progression at times, placing this performance at Band 5.5.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.0
The vocabulary used is generally adequate for the task, with attempts to incorporate less common items such as 'redesigned', 'modernized', 'reorganized', and 'barbecue'. However, there are numerous word-choice and spelling errors (e.g., 'significantely', 'compeletly', 'recrganized', 'siting', 'roon', 'takenthe'). These lexical and spelling inaccuracies occur frequently and sometimes cause strain for the reader, although they do not completely impede communication. This corresponds closely to the Band 5.0 descriptors.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0
The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but control over grammar and punctuation is weak. There are frequent basic errors, including missing articles, incorrect verb forms ('how it look today after it renovation', 'many major change has been takenthe'), and persistent capitalization and punctuation errors throughout the text (e.g., starting sentences with lowercase letters and fusing independent clauses). Because errors are frequent and occasionally obscure meaning, the writing sits firmly at Band 5.0.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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