Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-08

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)

The map dipictes the college cafe before and after it was restructured and how it was reoeganised now.

Overall, the most noticeable structural change was the addition of outdoor sitting. The staff dinning room has been converted into take away food and coffee bar. salad bar and barbecue section has been also added in cafe.

College cafe had a staff dining rooms have been converted into two different rooms named take away food and coffee bar. the serving area is redesigned into hot meals section and bin area is now bigger than before.

There are also the addition of new sections after restructuring cafe in college. The outdoor sitting was added for students with barbecue. salad bar is also added inside the cafe for the student and staff. the kitchen and toilets and doors has not been redesigned and kept as it was before. single bin section has been enlarged and multiple recycling bins has placed.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

You identify the main changes and provide an overview, particularly the new outdoor seating and the conversion of the staff dining rooms into takeaway and coffee areas. You also correctly note that the kitchen and toilets remain, and that the serving counter now provides hot meals. This covers the key features, although some details are less fully reported: for example, the new southern doors, four outdoor tables, and the salad bar’s position along the western wall are not clearly described. The claim that the bin area is “bigger” is not supported by the plan; it is replaced by recycling bins. To make the summary more complete and precise, compare the locations and functions of the changes rather than repeating the same additions.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

The response has an opening, an overview, and further detail, so the reader can recognise a basic paragraph structure. However, progression is limited because the final two paragraphs repeat several points, including the converted staff rooms, barbecue, and salad bar. Connections between ideas are also sometimes unclear: “There are also the addition of new sections” does not lead smoothly into the list that follows. Grouping the changes by area—north wall, interior, and outdoor space—would create a clearer sequence. Use linking expressions selectively and make references such as “it” or “this area” explicit, so each comparison is easy to follow.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant task vocabulary such as “restructured,” “converted,” “serving area,” and “recycling bins,” which helps communicate the main changes. There is some range, but several spelling errors and imprecise or unnatural phrases reduce control, including “dipictes,” “reoeganised,” “dinning,” and “outdoor sitting.” “The bin area is now bigger” is also an inaccurate choice of wording for the change shown: the single bin is replaced by recycling bins. Aim for accurate map vocabulary and check spelling carefully. More precise terms such as “outdoor seating area,” “counter,” and “replaced by” would make the description clearer and more natural.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple statements and longer sentences, but control is uneven, and errors sometimes make relationships between ideas difficult to understand. For example, “College cafe had a staff dining rooms have been converted” combines incompatible verb structures, while “salad bar and barbecue section has been also added” has problems with articles, agreement, and word order. In “the kitchen and toilets and doors has not been redesigned,” the subject and verb do not agree, and the list is awkwardly joined. Practise forming clear past-passive comparisons, such as “The staff dining rooms were replaced by…” Check singular and plural subjects, articles, and sentence boundaries before submitting.

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

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