Band 4.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 4.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-06
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 4.0)
The plan represents the interior of a college cafe before it was redesigned, and how it looks after completing the interior design.
Overall, the kitchen,bins and toilets remained at the same location,whereas on the opposite side of recycling bins, salad bar added.Earlier there wasn't an outdoor seating and barbecue spot,while the hot meals was replaced with serving area.Meanwhile,staff dining rooms were changed by takeaway food and coffee bar.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 3.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 4.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 4.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 4.5 |
| Overall | 4.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 3.0
The response falls severely short of the word count requirement, containing only 57 words compared to the minimum of 150 words. Consequently, the task is addressed only minimally. While the student attempts to outline some changes, such as the addition of a salad bar and outdoor seating, the summary is extremely brief, missing key features and failing to provide a well-developed overview or adequate comparisons. To improve, the writer must ensure they meet the minimum length requirement and expand significantly on the visual data presented in the plans, describing all major changes and maintaining a clear, comprehensive summary.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.5
The text is organized into two brief paragraphs, attempting an introductory overview and some body details. However, due to the extreme brevity of the text, logical progression and overall cohesion are restricted. Cohesive devices such as 'whereas', 'while', and 'meanwhile' are attempted, but referencing and linking are basic and occasionally awkward, as seen in the phrasing 'whereas on the opposite side of recycling bins, salad bar added.' To reach a higher level, the writer needs to organize ideas into distinct, well-developed paragraphs with a wider, more natural variety of cohesive links and a clearer overall structure.
Lexical Resource: Band 4.5
The vocabulary used is minimally adequate for the task, with some relevant terminology attempted, such as 'redesigned', 'interior', 'salad bar', and 'takeaway food'. However, there are noticeable lexical inaccuracies and awkward phrasing, such as 'completing the interior design' and 'salad bar added' missing an article and auxiliary verb. Vocabulary range is quite limited and repetitive. To improve, the student should expand their range of functional vocabulary for describing spatial changes, trends, and features, ensuring accurate word forms, collocations, and prepositions.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 4.5
The response shows a very limited range of sentence structures, relying mostly on basic complex sentences that contain noticeable errors. Grammatical errors include missing articles ('salad bar added'), awkward passive voice usage ('staff dining rooms were changed by takeaway food' instead of replaced with), and preposition issues. Punctuation is generally acceptable, but frequent minor structural flaws persist. To achieve a higher score, the writer must demonstrate a greater variety of complex structures with accurate verb forms, prepositions, and articles, reducing the frequency of basic grammatical errors.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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