Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 13 · 2026-09-16

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The plans below show the layout of a university’s sports centre now, and how it will look after redevelopment.

Summarize the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

Student answer (Band 5.5)

The appearance of a university's sports centre now and how it will look like after changings in the future are illustrated in the maps.

Overall, it is clear that currently The University sport centre is relatively simple and small with few facilities, while a lot more new additions of facilities will be accured and more odernazation in the sport centre.

First and foremost, on the west and east side of the university play area, are Outdoor courts right now, as compared to the future where these courts will emerged and expanded in the sport centre. However, in the centre of the sport centre a 25m Pool with Changning room on the west side and a seating place at the east side and a Gym on the north side of the map will remain same and on the west side of a map Leasure pool will be added and with a changing room and a Sports shop that will facilitate to students. On the east side of the map two dance studios will be added and in the North East side a sports hall will also be added. In the south east side of the map a changing room with a cafe will be built for refreshments.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The student successfully addresses the main features of the university sports centre maps, contrasting the present layout with the future redevelopment plans. The overview attempts to capture the transformation from a simple facility to a modernized and expanded centre, mentioning key additions like the leisure pool, sports hall, and dance studios. However, there are some inaccuracies in reporting the spatial details; for instance, the student states that the outdoor courts 'will emerged and expanded', whereas the plans clearly show that the outdoor courts are removed and built over by the expanded indoor building. While the response covers the primary structural changes, the precision in describing locations and transformations falls short of a higher band due to these minor misinterpretations of the visual data.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The response features an introduction, an overview paragraph, and a body section, providing a coherent overall arrangement. Cohesive devices are employed to link ideas, such as 'First and foremost', 'as compared to the future', and 'However'. Nevertheless, the progression in the body paragraph becomes somewhat convoluted and breathless, consisting of one extremely long, run-on sentence that crams multiple spatial details together ('However, in the centre of the sport centre a 25m Pool... and with a changing room...'). Paragraphing is also poorly managed, as all body points are lumped into a single dense block of text rather than being broken down logically into separate areas or features.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The student demonstrates an adequate vocabulary range for the task, attempting some less common lexical items related to maps and buildings, such as 'modernization', 'redevelopment', and 'facilitate'. However, there are frequent word-choice errors, awkward collocations, and spelling mistakes throughout the text, such as 'changings', 'accured', 'odernazation', 'emerged' (used incorrectly for demolished/replaced), 'Changning', and 'Leasure'. These errors occasionally draw attention and hinder precise communication, placing the response securely in Band 5.5 for Lexical Resource.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, utilizing relative clauses and introductory prepositional phrases. However, grammatical control is weak, marked by severe run-on sentences, missing prepositions, and incorrect verb forms. For example, the second body paragraph is essentially a single massive, grammatically tangled sentence loaded with conjunctions and clauses. Errors such as 'how it will look like after changings' and 'will be accured' reflect frequent issues with active/passive voice and word forms. While the basic meaning can generally be deciphered, the high density of structural errors prevents the response from achieving a Band 6.

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

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