Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-23

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 process diagram demonstrates the stages involved in the formation of a rain-shadow desert.

Overall, the process consists of seven stages, beginning with the winds have approached the coast and ending with dry winds have reached an inland area, which formed a rain-shadow desert.

Initially, the winds have approached the coast from sea. Then, winds are pushed in an upwards direction of the mountain. In the third stage of process, the level of the moist air has rised and become cooled. After that, the moist area converted into clouds at the windward side of the mountain. Consequently, at the peak of the mountain, rain has fallen in the windward side.

In the next stage, the dry air has continued to pass over the mountain at leeward side. Following this, dry air has followed downwards direction towards land. Finally, the dry winds have reached an inland area, where a little rain has fallen on an inland and that area known as a rain-shadow desert.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

The student successfully covers all parts of the task by outlining the main stages in the formation of a rain-shadow desert. The response provides a clear overview in the second paragraph, capturing the seven-stage sequence from winds approaching the coast to the creation of the desert inland. Key features, such as the moist air rising, clouds forming, precipitation on the windward side, and dry air descending on the leeward side, are correctly reported and positioned geographically. However, the task achievement is slightly limited by grammatical interference in the descriptions, leading to minor awkwardness in reporting the stages. Nevertheless, all core features of the diagram are present and logically summarised without any irrelevant information.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The report has a clear overall progression, moving logically from the initial stages at the coast through the mountain range to the inland desert. Information is grouped into sensible paragraphs, with an introduction, an overview, and distinct body paragraphs detailing the windward and leeward events. A range of cohesive devices is employed to sequence the stages, such as 'Initially', 'Then', 'In the third stage of process', 'After that', 'Consequently', and 'Finally'. However, cohesion is occasionally affected by awkward transitions or minor mechanical errors (e.g., 'In the third stage of process' missing an article). Referencing and paragraphing are generally handled well, ensuring the reader can easily follow the sequence of the diagram.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary suitable for describing a scientific process, incorporating terms such as 'process diagram', 'moist air', 'windward side', 'leeward side', 'dry air', and 'rain-shadow desert'. However, there are notable word-choice and morphological errors throughout the text, such as 'winds have approached' instead of 'winds approach', 'rised' instead of 'risen', and 'area converted' instead of 'air converted'. While these vocabulary limitations and minor inaccuracies do not impede overall communication, they prevent the lexical score from reaching higher bands where greater precision and natural collocation are required.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms to describe the sequential stages. However, the writing is heavily marred by persistent tense and morphological errors. The student consistently misuses the present perfect and past tenses (e.g., 'winds have approached', 'winds have rised', 'air has continued') when describing a continuous, timeless natural process that requires the present simple tense. Other errors include missing articles ('on an inland') and awkward passive/active transitions ('winds are pushed in an upwards direction'). While basic meaning remains clear, the frequency of grammatical inaccuracies in verb tenses restricts the score to a Band 5.0.

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