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 plans illustrate a college cafe before it was redesigned and how it looks now.

Overall, the college cafe has undergone significantly redevelopment, with many original feature being removed or replaced.

To begin with, east-north coroner was allocated to kitchen which was unchanged in today's paln. Beside the kitchen there was serving area for all food and drink, however that has been changed with Hot meals. Furthermore, middle of the cafe there was two staff dining rooms before it redesigned, whereas it replaced with take away food and coffee bar. Moreover, toilets were located at south-east corner of the cafe which was remained at the same place.

In addition, bins has been unchanged it just rename as the recycling bins. The new feature was added that is salad bar, which is possite to the recycling bins. Further, indoor tables and chairs were remained unchanged and allocated new outside seating with barbecue counter.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You identify the main purpose of the plans and give a useful overview that the café was substantially redeveloped, while noting that the kitchen and toilets stayed in place. You also report several key changes, including the hot-meals counter, the replacement of staff dining rooms, the salad bar and outdoor seating. However, some details are unclear or inaccurate: the kitchen is in the north-west, not the “east-north” corner, and the two staff dining rooms were along the north wall rather than in the middle. The outdoor area and barbecue are mentioned but not described clearly, and the new southern doors and recycling-bin position could be stated more precisely. The response is 140 words, below the 150-word minimum; develop the comparisons with a little more accurate detail.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a clear basic structure: an introduction, an overview and two paragraphs describing changes. This makes the main comparison reasonably easy to follow, and linking expressions such as “To begin with” and “In addition” help signal progression. However, the organisation is mostly a list of features rather than a consistently clear route through the plans. Some connections are difficult to interpret, particularly “In addition, bins has been unchanged it just rename…” and “Further, indoor tables and chairs were remained unchanged…”. Use clearer sentence boundaries and group related changes—for example, the northern counter and rooms together, then the western and southern additions. More precise referencing would also help readers understand which locations or features each sentence describes.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant vocabulary for describing a plan, including “serving area,” “staff dining rooms,” “recycling bins” and “outdoor seating.” These terms show an adequate range for the task, and the reader can generally identify the features you mean. However, several word choices, collocations and spelling errors reduce precision, such as “east-north coroner,” “paln,” “poss ite” and “barbecue counter.” Phrases such as “significantly redevelopment” and “original feature” also show inaccurate word forms or combinations. Aim for standard map-description language, such as “north-west corner,” “was redeveloped,” and “an outdoor barbecue area.” Proofreading spelling and choosing natural collocations would make the description clearer and more controlled.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentences, including a contrast with “whereas” and a relative clause beginning “which.” This gives the response some structural variety, and the overall meaning is usually recoverable. However, errors occur in verb forms, agreement, articles and sentence construction. For example, “there was two staff dining rooms” should use a plural verb, while “which was remained” and “bins has been unchanged” have faulty verb forms. The sentence beginning “Overall” also needs a noun phrase such as “significant redevelopment.” Work on consistent past-tense descriptions and accurate passive forms, such as “was replaced” or “remained,” and check that each sentence has a complete, grammatically sound clause.

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