Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-07

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.

The plans below show a college cafe before it was redesigned and how it looks now.

Student answer (Band 5.5)

The fiven map illustrates the information reagarding the changes in a college cafe before and after redesign.

Overall, it can be seen that new Outdoor seating, Barbecue and Salad bar was introduced in the cafe whereas, staff dining rooms was replaced by take away food or a coffee bar.

To begin with interior of cafe, two door which lead to outddor seating was intoduced and the staff dining rooms that are replaced by take away food and coffee bar. However serving area of all food and drink was also replaced by the hot meals section. While, the bin was also enlarged and replaced by recycle bin. Salad bar was a new thing that was started by the cafe.

On the other hand, the cafe intoduced a new barbecue section attached to the cafe and for dining outside the new outdoor seating was constructed. however after all that changes kitchen and toilets remained same throughout the redsigning process.

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response6.0
Coherence and Cohesion6.0
Lexical Resource5.5
Grammatical Range and Accuracy5.0
Overall5.5

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You identify the main overall changes: the former staff dining rooms became takeaway and coffee facilities, and outdoor seating, a barbecue and a salad bar were added. You also correctly note that the kitchen and toilets remained. These points address the task, but some details are incomplete or inaccurate. For example, the serving counter became a hot-meals section, while the bin was replaced by recycling bins; it was not described as enlarged. The outdoor area and its four tables are mentioned only generally, and the central seating area’s continuity is not reported. To strengthen the response, describe the key changes more precisely and compare the plans systematically, including what stayed the same and what was added or replaced.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a clear basic structure: an introduction, an overview and two body paragraphs. The overview helps the reader identify the main changes, and phrases such as “To begin with” and “On the other hand” signal progression. However, the organisation is not always logical: the second body paragraph begins with “On the other hand” even though it continues describing changes rather than presenting a clear contrast. Some links are also awkward or unclear, such as “While, the bin…” and “after all that changes.” Grouping the interior changes together and then describing the outdoor additions and unchanged features would create a clearer progression. Use linking words only when their relationship between ideas is accurate.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant vocabulary for describing a plan, including “replaced,” “remained,” “section” and “introduced,” and the reader can generally understand the changes. However, the range is somewhat limited, and several word-choice, collocation and spelling problems reduce precision. “The fiven map” and “a new thing” are unsuitable or inaccurate choices, while “enlarged” does not match the information shown. There are also repeated spelling errors, including “reagarding,” “outddor” and “redsigning.” Aim for precise plan-description language and check spelling carefully. More accurate terms such as “converted into,” “added” and “located” would help you report changes clearly without relying on vague wording.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentence forms, including a contrast clause beginning “whereas” and a sentence using “However.” Meaning is usually recoverable, but grammatical control is inconsistent. For example, “new Outdoor seating, Barbecue and Salad bar was introduced” has a subject–verb agreement problem, and “two door which lead” has errors in number and clause agreement. The sentence beginning “While, the bin…” is incomplete, and “the staff dining rooms that are replaced” uses an unsuitable verb form for describing a completed redesign. Punctuation and sentence boundaries also need attention, particularly around “However” and “While.” Practise accurate past-tense descriptions and check agreement, articles and plural forms.

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

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