Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-26
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 the process of how one type of desert, the formation of rain-shadow deserts.
Overall, the process consists of 7 main stages, beginning with Wind approach at coast and ending with dry winds reaching inland areas. For the end resulting in a rain-shadow desert in land areas of desert.
Initially, wind approach the coasts of sea. Following this, winds are pushed in an upward direction. Once this has been completed, the moist air increases and cools the wind and tempurature. The resulting cloud formation occurs before the main rain falls.
In the next stage, rain falls at the top of the mountains. Subsequently, dry air continues over the mountains in leeward side. Finally, the dry winds reach inland areas resulting in a rain-shadow desert. During this whole process starting from coast to ending to the winds in inland areas totally covers thousands of kilometers for the formation of rain-shadow desert.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5
The response covers all key stages of the process diagram, from the winds approaching the coast to the creation of the rain-shadow desert over thousands of kilometres. The main features are identified and reported, such as the windward side, the cooling and cloud formation, and the leeward side. However, the opening sentence is grammatically incomplete ('The diagram illustrates the process of how one type of desert, the formation of rain-shadow deserts.'), and the overview paragraph contains awkward phrasing ('For the end resulting in a rain-shadow desert in land areas of desert'). Despite these minor structural and formulation issues, the response successfully addresses all parts of the visual prompt, presenting a clear overall progression of the formation process.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0
The response has a coherent overall arrangement and is divided into logical paragraphs that follow the chronological stages of the diagram. Cohesive devices such as 'Initially', 'Following this', 'In the next stage', and 'Finally' are used to guide the reader through the sequence. However, paragraphing is somewhat fragmented, with the overview split across two short and disjointed paragraphs. Additionally, referencing is occasionally mechanical or repetitive, such as 'For the end resulting in' and 'During this whole process starting from coast to ending to the winds', which slightly disrupts the smooth flow and progression of ideas.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.5
The student attempts an adequate range of vocabulary suitable for describing a geographical process, successfully employing terms such as 'moist air', 'cloud formation', 'leeward side', and 'inland areas'. However, there are noticeable lexical inaccuracies and awkward collocations throughout the text. Examples include 'Wind approach' instead of 'winds approaching', 'increases and cools the wind and tempurature' where 'increases' is used incorrectly for air rising, and the misspelling of 'tempurature'. While the meaning is generally clear, these persistent word-choice and spelling errors limit the score to Band 5.5.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5
The response demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, attempting complex clauses like 'Once this has been completed, the moist air increases and cools...' and 'During this whole process starting from coast to ending...'. However, there are frequent grammatical errors, particularly with verb forms, subject-verb agreement, and incomplete sentences. For example, the opening sentence lacks a main verb ('The diagram illustrates the process of how one type of desert, the formation of rain-shadow deserts.'), and phrases like 'wind approach the coasts' contain tense and pluralisation errors. These errors occur regularly throughout the text, though they rarely impede overall communication.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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