Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-15

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 highlights changes a college cafe before it was redesigned and how its today.

Overall, the plan describe a college cafe with some changes. Its converted into modern cafe with adding take away food, coffee bar, salad bar and barbecue section.

To begin with, older cafe design which was a small cafe there was a kitchen with serving area where all foods and drinks served while after reshape this area remained same with a minor change now hot meals served there. In the mid of the cafe there ware some tables and chairs and next to this section two rooms are demonstrated in the picture that was used as staff dining place. In the corner of the cafe there was a toilet and inside of this placed a bin.

In contrast, today style of cafe is looks modern staff dining rooms replaced with take away food and coffee bar and outside of the left entrance a barbecue section installed and inside of this entrance salad bar is available however, tables and chairs area remains same. Moreover, outside of the cafe there are seating place with five tables two with four chairs and three with 6 cahirs each also a bin replaced with recycle bin.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You cover the main before-and-after changes and give an overview, noting the new takeaway food, coffee bar, salad bar and barbecue, as well as the unchanged central seating and toilets. Most locations are broadly reported accurately. However, some details are misread: the outdoor area has four tables, not five, and the plan does not specify the chair counts you give. The barbecue is beside the outdoor seating to the south-west, rather than outside a left entrance. The overview that the café became “modern” is general; a clearer summary of the main spatial changes would be more informative. The response addresses the task, but some features are less fully and accurately described than others.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction and overview are followed by a paragraph about the former layout and one about the current café. This gives the reader a basic route through the comparison. However, progression within the paragraphs is sometimes difficult to follow, particularly in the final paragraph, where the staff rooms, barbecue, salad bar, seating and bins are joined in one long sequence. Linking phrases such as “To begin with,” “In contrast,” and “Moreover” are used, but some connections are unclear or mechanical; for example, “outside of the left entrance” does not clearly relate the barbecue to the plan. Grouping changes by location and using clearer references to the north, west and south would make the comparison easier to follow.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use some relevant vocabulary for describing plans, including “serving area,” “staff dining rooms,” “replaced,” and “remained same,” so the reader can identify several changes. However, the range and control are limited, with noticeable word-choice, collocation and spelling problems. Phrases such as “how its today,” “after reshape,” and “seating place” are not natural or precise for this task, while “cahirs” and “ware” are spelling errors. Repetition of “cafe,” “area” and “section” also limits variety. Aim for accurate, conventional map language and check spelling; more precise terms for locations and alterations would improve clarity without requiring unusually advanced vocabulary.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and longer sentences, including a comparison with “while” and a contrast introduced by “however.” Some meaning remains understandable, but errors in sentence structure and basic forms are frequent enough to make parts awkward. For example, “The map highlights changes a college cafe” is missing a grammatical link, and “Its converted” needs a passive verb form. There are also problems with agreement and articles in “the plan describe” and “a toilet,” as well as tense and clause construction in “where all foods and drinks served.” The final sentence joins several ideas without clear punctuation. Practise accurate passive forms and shorter, complete comparison sentences before adding more complex clauses.

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