Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-24

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 illustrates the 7 steps involved in making a rain-shadow desert.

Overall, the procedure consists of 7 steps, beggining with the wind approaching the coast and ending with the dry winds reaching the inland area. The wind ends up traveling thousands of kilometres throughout the process.

In the beggining, the wind from the sea reaches the coast and the coast pushes it upward. Majority of the wind cools down as it moves up and reaches the clouds in the windward side of the mountain.

Finally, it starts raining in the windward side and the dry air makes its way to the other side, Leeward side over the mountain. At last the dry winds reach the inland areas and rain-shadow desert is formed due to it.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the process as seven stages and give a relevant overview, correctly noting that it begins with winds approaching the coast and ends with dry winds reaching inland. You also mention the key sequence of rising air, cloud formation, rainfall and movement over the mountain. However, some details are unclear or inaccurate: the coast does not push the wind upwards; the mountains force it to rise. The explanation that “the wind ends up traveling thousands of kilometres” misuses the diagram’s scale marker, which indicates the horizontal distance shown rather than a stage or outcome. The final claim that the desert is formed “due to it” is also vague. The response is 23 words below the required minimum, limiting the detail provided. Develop the stages more fully and clarify the windward/leeward contrast.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, an overview, and two paragraphs describing the process. Sequencing expressions such as “Overall,” “In the beginning,” and “Finally” help the reader follow the general order. However, progression within the description is sometimes compressed, and the link between stages is not always clear. For example, “reaches the clouds” makes it sound as though the wind reaches clouds, rather than rising air cooling and causing clouds to form. “At last” repeats the function of “Finally,” while “due to it” has an unclear reference. To improve cohesion, connect each cause and result explicitly and use references that clearly identify the air, rainfall, or desert. A fuller account would also allow the stages to be linked more smoothly.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use a suitable range of process vocabulary, including “approaching,” “upward,” “windward,” “Leeward,” and “dry air,” and the main meaning is generally clear. Some choices are imprecise or do not fit the diagram’s meaning: “making” is less appropriate than “forming,” and “the coast pushes it upward” assigns the action to the wrong feature. “Reaches the clouds” is also an awkward way to describe the formation of clouds. Spelling errors in “beggining” occur twice and reduce accuracy, while “inland area” is less precise than the diagram’s plural “inland areas.” Aim for accurate process collocations and check spelling; this will make your otherwise relevant vocabulary more precise.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You use both simple sentences and some more developed structures, including the overview sentence beginning “Overall” and the clause “as it moves up.” Most sentences communicate the intended sequence, but some grammatical choices make relationships unclear. In “Majority of the wind cools down,” the noun phrase needs a determiner (“The majority”), and “reaches the clouds” does not clearly express the intended process. The final sentence, “rain-shadow desert is formed due to it,” needs an article and a clearer reference for “it.” There is also an unnecessary comma after “At last” and an extra space in “to the.” Work on articles, precise clause construction, and punctuation while retaining a mix of sentence forms.

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