Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-05

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)

The following plans illustrates a collage cafe before it was redesigned and how it looks currently.

Overall, the Tables and chairs remained the prominent feature which remain constant without any changes. The main changes that had seen is the development of Outdoor seating with the addition of various dining set.

The current cafe has changed lots of setting to provide better facilites for the visitors. Like in older map there used to have Serving area which include all food and drink but it has been replaced by Hot meals. Similary there used to have staff dining rooms in two seperated bocks but today there has been added take away food and Coffee bar.

There has added some new sections like salad bar for the convinence of visitors. For instance, the bins sized also increased to manage all the waste properly. Moreover, in the outside there has addition of various dining set with a focus to attact more costumers. One Barbecue also has been added.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

The response addresses the main features of the task, meeting the minimum word count once prompt-copied words are excluded, and attempts to provide an overview. However, the development is limited and partially inaccurate in places. For example, the writer states that the staff dining rooms were replaced by take away food and a coffee bar, which is accurate, but the description of the dining sets and barbecue lacks precise spatial referencing. The position and purpose of several elements are only partially clear, placing this criterion at the band level. To move higher, the student must provide a more fully developed and accurate summary of all key spatial transformations without oversimplifying or missing critical changes.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

There is some organisation in the response, beginning with an introductory sentence and an overall summary, followed by body paragraphs detailing specific changes. However, there is no clear overall progression, and the logical flow is hindered by repetitive phrasing and inadequate or mechanical cohesive devices. For instance, the transitions between sentences feel abrupt, such as starting consecutive sentences with 'Like in older map' and 'Similary there used to have'. Paragraphing is attempted, but internal cohesion is weak. To improve, the student should ensure a logical sequence of information and use a wider variety of cohesive devices more naturally to connect ideas smoothly across paragraphs.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

The vocabulary used is limited and minimally adequate for the task. The student attempts some less common vocabulary, such as 'prominent', 'redesigned', and 'convinence', but these attempts are often accompanied by word form errors, spelling mistakes, or awkward collocations. Examples include 'collage cafe' instead of 'college café', 'bins sized' instead of 'bin size', and 'attact' instead of 'attract'. These noticeable errors cause some difficulty for the reader. To achieve a higher band, the student needs to expand their lexical repertoire and ensure greater accuracy in word choice, spelling, and word forms when attempting more sophisticated terminology.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The writer employs a limited range of sentence structures, relying mostly on simple sentences alongside a few attempts at complex forms that are frequently faulty. There are frequent grammatical errors throughout the text, including issues with verb forms, subject-verb agreement, and articles. Examples include 'The following plans illustrates' (disagreement), 'there used to have serving area' (incorrect existential structure), and 'in the outside there has addition' (awkward prepositional and passive/active confusion). These frequent errors can cause some difficulty for the reader. To progress, the student must increase structural variety and improve mastery over basic grammatical patterns, verb tenses, and prepositions.

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

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