Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 14 · 2026-09-19

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 6.0)

The following diagram illustrates how electricity is generated in a hydroelectric power station. In the initial stage the River water is reserved in a High-level reservoir controlled by a Dam, where water intake takes place in Day and dam closes at Night.

In next stage the flow of water that goes downwords is used to generate electricity in day time with a pipe,where Reversible turbines are placed, on the other hand these Reversible turbines also pump water into high-level reservoir, through which the flow of water moves upword and the whole process takes place at night.

In the next stage reversible turbines come into action in order to operate Generator at the power station, where electricity flows in the power lines and tranfer into National grid.

In the final stage the remaining water is used to store in the low-level reservoir in day and pumps back through the help of Reversible turbines.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The student successfully identifies the main features of the hydroelectric power station process, covering both the daytime electricity generation phase and the nighttime water pumping phase. Key components such as the high-level reservoir, dam, intake, reversible turbines, generator, and low-level reservoir are mentioned. However, there is some confusion in the final stage where the student states that the remaining water is stored in the low-level reservoir during the day and pumped back, which slightly misinterprets the cyclical nature of day and night operations shown in the diagram. Despite this minor confusion, the response provides a clear overall summary of the process, satisfying the requirements for Task Achievement at a Band 6.0 level.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The text demonstrates a coherent overall arrangement with a logical progression of stages from the river and high-level reservoir through to the power station and low-level reservoir. The student uses sequence markers such as 'In the initial stage', 'In next stage', and 'In the final stage' to structure the response. However, paragraphing is somewhat weak, as the entire text is broken into short, somewhat fragmented paragraphs. Cohesive devices are occasionally mechanical or repetitive, and referencing is sometimes unclear, particularly with prepositions and relative clauses. Overall, the organizational structure is adequate to earn a Band 6.0 for Coherence and Cohesion.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary suitable for describing a technical process, incorporating specific terms from the prompt such as 'hydroelectric power station', 'reservoir', 'reversible turbines', 'generator', and 'National grid'. However, there are notable spelling errors ('downwords' instead of downwards, 'upword' instead of upward, 'tranfer' instead of transferred) and awkward word choices or collocations ('reserved' instead of stored, 'through the help of'). These lexical slips and inaccuracies somewhat limit the precision of the response, placing it firmly in the Band 6.0 category.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The response includes a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating some attempt at subordination and relative clauses, such as in 'where water intake takes place in Day and dam closes at Night' and 'where Reversible turbines are placed'. However, grammatical control is inconsistent. There are frequent missing articles ('in Day', 'at Night', 'into National grid'), punctuation errors, and awkward phrasing that affects readability. While these errors do not completely impede communication, they prevent the score from rising above a Band 5.5 due to the noticeable lack of accurate complex structures.

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

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