Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-29
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 diagram illustrates a college cafe before it was redesigned and how it looked now.
Overall, it is clear that the cafe has changed some areas with the introduction of a salad bar, barbecue, outdoor seating, take away food and coffee bar. The main development is that now students can sit outside and eat their food and drinks.
Looking at the plans in more detail, we can see that the serving area has now been changed to hot meals, while staff dining rooms have been changed to takeaway food and a coffee bar. Now students can pack their food to take away and can have a cup of coffee. A salad bar has also been added to the west side of the cafe. Tables and chairs, recycling bins and toilets remain the same as before.
On the other hand, the new facilities include a barbecue area where students can enjoy barbecue food. There is also outdoor seating where students can enjoy their food while sitting. This includes five tables and twenty-six chairs.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 6.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 6.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0
The student successfully addresses all parts of the task by comparing the college cafe before and after its redesign. An overview is provided, highlighting the main changes such as the introduction of the salad bar, outdoor seating, and barbecue. Key features are reported, including the conversion of the serving area to hot meals and staff rooms to takeaway food and a coffee bar. However, there are minor inaccuracies in reporting specific details, such as stating 'students can sit outside and eat their food and drinks' and mentioning five tables and twenty-six chairs which are not explicitly supported by the visual data. Overall, the response covers the main trends well, earning a solid Band 6.5 to 7.0; here, it comfortably meets Band 6.5 requirements for addressing all parts with relevant ideas.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5
The text is logically organised with a clear overall progression. It begins with an introductory sentence and an overview paragraph, followed by detailed body paragraphs describing the interior and exterior changes respectively. Cohesive devices are used adequately, such as 'Overall', 'Looking at the plans in more detail', and 'On the other hand', ensuring smooth transitions between ideas. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate different sections of the visual data. Referencing is generally clear, though paragraph transitions could be slightly more refined. This performance aligns well with Band 7 descriptors for logical organisation and clear progression.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.5
The student uses a sufficient range of vocabulary appropriate for Task 1, including terms like 'redesigned', 'introduction', 'development', and 'facilities'. There are attempts to use less common vocabulary and functional paraphrasing, such as 'converting the serving area to hot meals' and 'staff dining rooms have been changed to takeaway food'. However, there are some minor awkward collocations or repetitive phrasing, such as 'eat their food and drinks' and 'enjoy their food while sitting'. Spelling and word choice errors do not impede communication, placing the response securely in the Band 6.0 territory.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5
The response displays a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, such as 'Overall, it is clear that the cafe has changed...' and 'A salad bar has also been added to the west side of the cafe.' There is good control over basic structures, and punctuation is generally accurate. While there are some minor grammatical slips or slightly unnatural phrasing (e.g., mixing present and past tenses inconsistently when describing the map: 'how it looked now'), the errors are infrequent and do not impede communication. This demonstrates the characteristics of Band 6.0 writing.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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