Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-08-04

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The diagram below shows how one type of desert, known as a rain-shadow desert, is formed.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

The formation of rain-shadow deserts

Student answer (Band 5.5)

The diagram illustrates how a rain-shadow desert is formed.

Overall, the formation of this desert is a natural process. The process includes seven steps beginning with the production of warm and moist winds and ending with dry wind reaching inland areas.

The process is carried out at a coastal area. First of all, warm and moist winds are produced from the ocean or sea. Subsequently, winds are pushed upward against the force of gravity. Once winds reaching at the top, they become cooler. After that, the winds is converted into clouds then they cause rainfall in the windward side. The windward side has a cool atmosphere.

However, the process is moved to leeward side now. In this side, dry air travels thousands of kilometers and many mountains and they continue to travel downward and reach inland areas where the atmosphere is completely dry. At the last, dry wind makes a rain-shadow desert by reaching inland.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response covers the main stages of the rain-shadow desert formation process, from the initial moist winds to the final dry conditions inland. However, the description is somewhat mechanical and lacks a clear synthesis of the relationship between the windward and leeward sides. While the key features are identified, the explanation of the physical mechanism—specifically the cooling of air as it rises and the subsequent loss of moisture—could be more precise. The overview is functional but could be more descriptive of the overall trend rather than just stating it is a natural process.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, and there is a clear progression from the start to the end of the process. Cohesive devices such as 'First of all', 'Subsequently', and 'However' are used to link ideas. However, some transitions feel slightly repetitive or mechanical. The referencing is generally clear, though the flow between the windward and leeward descriptions could be smoother to better highlight the contrast between the two environments.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is adequate for the task, using terms like 'coastal area', 'windward side', and 'leeward side'. However, the range is somewhat limited, and there are instances of slightly unnatural phrasing, such as 'The process is moved to leeward side now' and 'At the last'. To reach a higher band, you should aim for more precise collocations and a greater variety of descriptive verbs and nouns related to meteorological processes.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The response contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are several grammatical errors that occur throughout the text, such as subject-verb agreement issues ('the winds is converted', 'winds reaching at the top') and prepositional errors ('in the windward side' instead of 'on'). While these errors do not prevent the reader from understanding the process, they are frequent enough to limit the score. More attention to verb forms and article usage would improve the accuracy significantly.

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

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