Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-22
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 given diagram depicts a sequential process in which a type of desert, known as a rain-shadow desert is formed.
Overall, there are seven distinct steps. In which the winds reached the four areas of the mountains. The coast, windward side, leeward side and inland areas. In the initial stage, the wind approach from the sea costal and culiminating in the dry lands.
Begin with, the wind travel through the sea costal moves asending and pushed upwards. Moreover, the wind is absorbs the mositure from the air and cools. Subsequently, the moisture-ladden wind is reaches the windward side and forming into a cloud, then clouds onward arrive at summit of the mountain. Consequently, precipitation is occurs on the altitude.
Furthermore, after discharge the surplus water, the parched winds encounter the leeward side by covering the thousand of kilometers distance. Lastly, dry winds arrive at the hyper-arid inland areas on the opposite sides of the mountains.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The student successfully covers all the key stages of the rain-shadow desert formation process, moving logically from the winds approaching the coast to the dry winds reaching inland areas. The main features are identified and reported, such as the windward and leeward sides, cloud formation, precipitation, and the geographic scale of thousands of kilometres. However, there are some minor descriptive inaccuracies and awkward phrasings regarding the mechanical details of the process, such as stating the wind 'absorbs the mositure' rather than picking up moisture from the sea. Overall, the response addresses all parts of the task adequately, providing a clear summary of the diagram while meeting the required word count.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The response is organized into four paragraphs, following a logical introduction, overview, and step-by-step body structure. Cohesive devices are used to signal progression, such as 'In the initial stage', 'Begin with', 'Moreover', 'Subsequently', and 'Lastly'. However, several cohesive links and transitional phrases are awkward, mechanically applied, or grammatically incorrect (e.g., 'In which the winds reached...', 'Begin with, the wind travel...'). Paragraphing is generally appropriate, but referencing and sentence flow are occasionally disrupted by poor punctuation and awkward connectors, placing this firmly in the Band 6 descriptor range where organization is coherent overall but cohesion can be faulty.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The student attempts a range of vocabulary relevant to the diagram, including terms such as 'sequential process', 'precipitation', 'parched winds', and 'hyper-arid'. However, there are frequent word choice errors, spelling mistakes, and morphological issues throughout the text, such as 'mositure' (moisture), 'costal' (coastal), 'culiminating' (culminating), 'asending' (ascending), and 'moisture-ladden' (moisture-laden). While the range is adequate for describing the process and some less common vocabulary is attempted with varying degrees of success, these noticeable lexical errors prevent the score from reaching a higher band.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The response demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, but control over grammar and syntax is weak. There are numerous grammatical errors, including fragments, tense inconsistencies, and subject-verb agreement issues (e.g., 'In which the winds reached...', 'the wind approach from the sea costal', 'the moisture-ladden wind is reaches the windward side and forming into a cloud', and 'precipitation is occurs'). These errors occur frequently and occasionally cause some difficulty for the reader, though communication of the overall process remains largely intact. The high density of basic grammatical slips restricts the score to Band 5.0.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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