Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-14

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

Overall,the formation takes place at a sea bed where winds approache coast on the edge of mountain ,due to high pressure of air pushing winds into uward direction this may results in the formation of moist air rinsing. Although this highly intensive air pressure is quite cooler because it lies along the axis of mountain.

subsequently, windside proposed the cooler moist air to plugged into the cloud,formation of clouds lie at peak level which get later results into rain fall.

Accumulating water drops and dry air continously flow in a downward trend over the mountain, follows the path of leeward side, therefore vesseled dry winds reaches on the layer of inland which build upon Rain-shadow desert .

In conclusion,diversified steps are involved in the formation of wind approach to form a rain-shadow desert.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response covers the main features of the diagram detailing how a rain-shadow desert is formed, successfully outlining the stages from moist air approaching the coast, rising over the mountain, releasing precipitation, and descending as dry air onto the inland area. The overview sentence successfully highlights the key process. While the mechanical details and terminology are somewhat confused in places—for instance, describing the high pressure pushing winds upward and stating that cool moist air gets 'plugged into the cloud'—the overall progression of the process is adequately reported. Ideas are relevant, earning a solid Band 6.0 for covering all parts of the task despite some under-developed and unclear explanations of the specific meteorological mechanisms shown in the visual prompt.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The response exhibits a coherent overall arrangement with a clear attempt to structure the process sequentially using transition markers such as 'Overall', 'subsequently', and 'In conclusion'. Paragraphing is utilized to separate the introduction, body stages, and conclusion. However, cohesion is sometimes mechanical and faulty. For example, referencing and linking between clauses are awkward in phrases like 'windside proposed the cooler moist air to plugged into the cloud'. Furthermore, punctuation errors, such as missing spaces after commas (e.g., 'Overall,the'), disrupt the smooth flow of reading. These cohesion issues place the response firmly at Band 5.5, as the logical progression is occasionally hindered by inadequate and inaccurate cohesive devices.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

The vocabulary used demonstrates an adequate range for completing the task, including topic-specific terms like 'moist air', 'rain fall', 'dry air', and 'rain-shadow desert'. However, the student attempts less common vocabulary with noticeable inaccuracy and unnatural collocation, such as 'high pressure of air pushing winds into uward direction', 'windside proposed the cooler moist air to plugged into the cloud', and 'vesseled dry winds'. There are also minor spelling errors like 'uward' and 'continously'. Because the lexical choices are frequently imprecise and awkward while still allowing the core message about the desert's formation to be understood, a Band 5.0 is appropriate.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The response features a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, attempting complex formulations such as 'due to high pressure of air pushing winds into uward direction this may results in the formation of moist air rinsing.' However, grammatical accuracy is weak, with frequent errors including subject-verb agreement issues ('results' instead of 'result'), incorrect verb forms ('rinsing' instead of 'rising', 'proposed' instead of 'causes'), and awkward prepositional usage. Punctuation errors, such as missing spaces and comma splices, are also recurrent. Although communication is not completely obscured, the high density of structural errors prevents the response from reaching Band 6.0, making Band 5.0 a more accurate reflection of the current control.

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

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