Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 14 · 2026-08-18

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The diagram below shows how electricity is generated in a hydroelectric power station.

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

Student answer (Band 5.5)

The diagram here demonstrates about the generation of electricity in a hydroelectric power station. It illustrates the advancement and development of humans in the science behind generation of electricity. It shows how the electricity is generated with the help of water from a river, and then supplied afterwards. In the beginning, the water from a river flows down at high-level reservoir where a dam is situated. Here water intake is opened during the day, that helps in flow of water to generate electricity and closed during night time, that helps in flow of water during pumping. At next step, the water enters in the reversible turbines where during the day, it operates the generator and during night, it pumps water into low-level reservoir. The remaining water is flushed out via a low level reservoir. After that, the generator works at the power station. Here the electricity is generated and supplied via power lines and further passes through national grids. And that's how we are able to receive the electricity into our homes.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response covers the main features of the hydroelectric power station process. However, it lacks a clear overview or summary of the process, which is essential for Task 1. The description of the process is somewhat repetitive and includes unnecessary commentary, such as 'It illustrates the advancement and development of humans,' which is not relevant to the diagram. While the key stages (high-level reservoir, dam, turbines, generator, and national grid) are mentioned, the explanation of the day/night cycle is slightly confusing and could be more precisely articulated to show the relationship between the components.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The response is coherent, but the paragraphing is non-existent, as the entire text is written as a single block. This makes it difficult to follow the logical progression of the process. While some cohesive devices are used, such as 'In the beginning,' 'At next step,' and 'After that,' they are somewhat mechanical and repetitive. The flow of ideas is generally logical, but the lack of paragraph breaks hinders the overall structure and readability of the report.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is adequate for the task, allowing the student to describe the technical process. There are some instances of imprecise word choice, such as 'demonstrates about' (which is grammatically incorrect) and 'flushed out,' which is not the most accurate term for water movement in this context. The student manages to use technical terms like 'reversible turbines,' 'reservoir,' and 'national grids' correctly, which demonstrates a sufficient range for the task, though it lacks the sophistication required for higher bands.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The student uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are several grammatical errors, such as 'demonstrates about the generation,' 'enters in the reversible turbines,' and 'into low-level reservoir' (missing article). Additionally, the phrasing 'that helps in flow of water' is slightly awkward. While these errors do not impede communication, they are frequent enough to prevent the response from reaching a higher band. Punctuation is generally functional, but the sentence construction could be more varied and precise.

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

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