Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 13 · 2026-10-12

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 plan below demonstrates the layout of a univerity's sports centre now, and how it will look after reconstruction. University sports centre have two outdoor courts which will be use to extend the sports centre.

Overall, present university sports centre is small and have only limited facilites with only two outdoor courts. However, the future plan shows extended sports centre with more facilities.

Firstly, in present plan on the western side there is a changing room and outdoor courts which will be transform into leisure pool and on the southern west the extra space will be use for changing room and sports shop. Moreover, currently on the southern direction there is a reception at the entrance which will be modify into sports shop in the future.

Secondly, on the eastern side there is a seating with an outdoor court. The future plan illustrates reconstruction of outdoor courts into sports hall with two dance studios at the front of dance studios. Furthermore, southern east have cafe in the modified plan and the northern side of university have gym but in the future plan the gym will be bigger with a 25metre pool in the centre of the university sports centre

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response5.5
Coherence and Cohesion6.0
Lexical Resource5.5
Grammatical Range and Accuracy5.0
Overall5.5

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the main overall change: the centre expands into the areas occupied by outdoor courts and gains facilities such as a leisure pool, sports hall and dance studios. You also compare the present and future layouts, so the response is relevant to the task. However, several details are inaccurate or unclear. The central reception remains in place; it is not modified into a sports shop, which is added in the south-west. The 25-metre pool also remains central, rather than being a new feature of the future plan. The description omits some important retained features and does not clearly explain the full eastern and south-eastern additions. A more precise overview and accurate account of what stays, moves or is added would strengthen the report.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, an overview and two body paragraphs organised broadly by the western and eastern sides. Sequencing words such as “Firstly,” “Moreover” and “Secondly” help signal the progression. However, some connections are mechanical, and the final paragraph combines several locations and changes in a way that makes their relationships difficult to follow. For example, “two dance studios at the front of dance studios” is unclear, while the gym and central pool are joined in the final sentence without a clear comparison. Use more precise location-based linking and give each sentence one main change to describe. This would make the overall progression clearer and reduce ambiguity in referencing.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use a relevant range of vocabulary for describing plans, including “western side,” “leisure pool,” “sports hall” and “dance studios.” These terms show awareness of the task’s spatial and facility-related language. However, several word choices and collocations are inaccurate or repetitive: “reconstruction” and “modified plan” are used where “redevelopment” or “proposed layout” would be more natural, and “at the front of dance studios” does not clearly express the rooms’ positions. There are also spelling errors, including “univerity,” “facilites” and “cafe.” Aim for precise verbs such as “remain,” “be replaced by” and “be added,” and check spelling and collocations so the reader can interpret each change confidently.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentences, including clauses with “which” and “with,” and the general meaning is usually recoverable. However, errors occur frequently in verb forms, agreement, articles and sentence construction. Examples include “sports centre have” and “the future plan shows extended sports centre,” where agreement and article use are faulty; “will be use” and “will be transform” need passive participles. The sentence beginning “Moreover, currently on the southern direction” also has an awkward grammatical pattern, and the final sentence joins several ideas without clear structure. Practise accurate passive forms for planned changes (“will be converted”) and check subject–verb agreement and articles. Shorter, well-controlled sentences would help communicate the comparisons more reliably.

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