Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 13 · 2026-10-04
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 plans demonstrates the layout of a university's sports centre, how it looks now and how it will look after renovation. Overall, it can be clearlly seen that the structure will be changed to rectengular shape and many chnaging rooms and some dance studions will be introduced in the future.
The present plan has two outdoor courts in both thes side of the main building, one is located in west another in East. The main building has reception in entrance, 25m pool is in the center, changing room is constructed in west, In contrast seating are in the west, Gym in the north.
In the future plans outdoor courts completely removed. Main building expanded and it introduce leisure pool in the west side where outdoor couts in present plan, changing room is introduced to the south side of leisure pool. Gym area expanded and in the east side two dance studio room will build, reception are also expanded, cafe one building only
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5
The response attempts to cover all parts of the prompt by describing the present layout and the future redevelopment plans of the university sports centre, achieving an overall summary. However, some parts are addressed only partially and key features are under-developed or inaccurately reported. For instance, the student states that 'seating are in the west', whereas the visual data clearly places the seating on the east side of the 25m pool, and the description of the new additions in the final paragraph becomes disjointed and fragmentary, ending with the vague phrase 'cafe one building only'. While there is an attempt at an overview, it is basic, noting that the structure becomes rectangular and mentions changing rooms and dance studios. To move to a higher band, the student needs to present a clearer, more accurate, and better-developed overview alongside a precise, fully supported description of all key spatial changes without factual inaccuracies.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0
The response demonstrates a coherent overall arrangement with a clear attempt to structure the writing into an introduction, a body paragraph for the present layout, and a body paragraph for the future plans. Progression is visible as it moves logically from current to future states. However, cohesion is at times mechanical and faulty. There is an over-reliance on basic transitional markers, and referencing can be confusing, such as jumping abruptly between details in the final paragraph without smooth linking devices. Paragraphing is present, but the final paragraph is somewhat disjointed and lacks clear internal cohesion. To achieve a higher level of cohesion, the student should use a wider and more flexible range of cohesive devices and ensure that ideas flow logically from one sentence to the next with clear referencing.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.0
The vocabulary used is limited and barely adequate for the task. The student attempts some less common vocabulary related to maps and buildings, such as 'redevelopment', 'renovation', and 'reconstructed', but this is offset by noticeable spelling and word choice errors. There are several spelling mistakes throughout the text, including 'clearlly', 'rectengular', 'chnaging', 'studions', 'thes', and 'couts'. Word choice is sometimes imprecise or awkward, such as calling the dance studio rooms 'dance studio room will build' and ending with 'cafe one building only'. These lexical inaccuracies and spelling errors occasionally cause difficulty for the reader and restrict the score to this level. To improve, the student needs to expand their range of vocabulary for describing spatial changes and pay closer attention to accurate spelling and word formation.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0
The text displays a very limited range of grammatical structures, relying heavily on simple sentences and basic active voice constructions. Where complex structures or descriptive clauses are attempted, they are frequently faulty. Examples of grammatical and punctuation errors include missing articles ('The plans demonstrates', 'reception in entrance'), subject-verb agreement errors ('seating are in the west'), incorrect prepositions ('in both thes side', 'in west'), and fragments ('outdoor courts completely removed'). These frequent errors can cause some difficulty for the reader, although meaning is generally retrievable. To reach a higher band, the student must demonstrate a greater variety of complex sentence forms with improved control over verb tenses, articles, prepositions, and subject-verb agreement, producing more error-free sentences.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.