Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · 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 5.5)

This plan illustrates the redesigning of college cafe that how it looks before and how it looks now.

Overall, There are several significant changes in cafe after redesigning. Such as Salad bar, take-away food, Coffe bar, Barbecue and Outdoor seating.

Before redesigning the college cafe, when we entered into the cafe. We had a bin and toils on the left corner. Right infront of us, we saw two staff dining rooms along with tables and chairs. To pass beyond this, we saw a kitchen and serving area.

After redesigning the cafe, when we enter into the cafe. We see toilet and bin as it is there. Beyond this, We see two rooms, one is Coffe bar and another one is for take away food. Next to this, we see a kitchen and hot meals area. Then, we look a salad bar. On the right upper corner of cafe, we see two gates. When we go outside, we see a barbecue area and large area for outdoor seating.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

The response addresses all parts of the task by identifying the main features and making relevant comparisons between the two plans. An overview is provided at the beginning, highlighting key additions such as the salad bar and outdoor seating. However, some parts of the task are developed more fully than others. For instance, the spatial descriptions rely heavily on a first-person narrative perspective ('when we entered into the cafe') rather than an objective analytical approach, and some details are slightly inaccurate regarding locations, such as placing the toilets and bins incorrectly on the left. To move to a higher band, the response should maintain an objective tone and cover all significant spatial relationships more accurately without drifting into conversational narration.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The text presents a coherent overall arrangement with a clear division between the introduction, overview, and descriptions of the past and present layouts. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate the different sections. However, cohesion is at times mechanical and repetitive, particularly in the way sentences are introduced using phrases like 'Before redesigning...' and 'After redesigning the cafe, when we enter...'. Referencing can also be unclear, and logical progression within paragraphs is somewhat disjointed. To improve, you should employ a wider range of cohesive devices and transitional phrases to connect ideas smoothly, and ensure the information flows naturally from one area of the map to another without relying on repetitive sentence stems.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The vocabulary used is adequate for the task, successfully communicating basic features of the maps such as 'kitchen', 'salad bar', 'outdoor seating', and 'barbecue'. There are attempts to use less common vocabulary, but these are accompanied by lexical inaccuracies and word-choice errors, such as 'redesigning of college cafe' (missing article), 'Coffe bar' (spelling error), and 'toils' (incorrect word form/spelling for toilets). Additionally, phrasing like 'look a salad bar' demonstrates unnatural collocation. These errors do not seriously impede communication, but they restrict the score. To reach a higher level, you should expand your range of functional vocabulary for describing spatial changes and pay closer attention to precise word choices, correct word forms, and accurate spelling.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The response displays a limited mix of simple and some complex sentence forms, but control over grammar and punctuation is inconsistent. There are several noticeable errors in articles, prepositions, and verb forms, such as 'how it looks before and how it looks now' (tense inconsistency), 'in cafe' (missing article), and 'Right infront of us' (spacing and preposition issues). Sentence structures tend to be repetitive and rely on direct, basic patterns. Punctuation is also faulty in places, such as sentence fragments ('Such as Salad bar, take-away food, Coffe bar, Barbecue and Outdoor seating.'). To achieve a higher band, you need to demonstrate a greater variety of complex grammatical structures with a higher proportion of error-free sentences, alongside better control over articles and prepositions.

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

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