Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · 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 5.0)

The diagram illustrates the distinct stages of generation of electricity in a hydroelectric power station.

Overall, this is a linear process initiates with the flow of water from river at day time driving towards power station. And after passing through series of steps, electricity transported to national grid through power lines.

Initially, the process begins when water flow from the river to dam containing high level of reservoir. The water is released by opening the dam gates specifically at day time, while reverse is followed at night. The water is driven in power station where generator helps to produce electricity, but there are reversible turbines at the bottom that assist the flow of water at day and night. The function of turbines is to operate generator at day time and low-level reservoir is collected in small channels, while at night turbines pumped water in to high-level reservoir where it can be stored for further used.

The picture depicts the electricity generation process at hydroelectric power station and after the production the electricity is transported to national grid through the power lines.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The student attempts to summarise the main features of the hydroelectric power station process, covering the day and night cycles, the reservoirs, and the generator. However, there are some inaccuracies and confusions in reporting the visual data. For instance, the statement 'low-level reservoir is collected in small channels' misinterprets the diagram's depiction of the water flowing into the low-level reservoir during the day. Furthermore, the overview provided in the introduction and conclusion is repetitive and lacks a clear, concise synthesis of the overall mechanism. While the response identifies the key components such as the high-level reservoir, intake, reversible turbines, and national grid, the lack of precision in describing the cyclical nature of the water flow prevents it from reaching a higher band. It satisfies the basic requirements of task achievement by addressing the main stages, but suffers from under-developed descriptions of the dual day and night processes.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0

The response has an overall arrangement that attempts to follow a sequential progression, starting from the river and ending at the national grid. However, paragraphing is poorly handled, with a very brief opening, a massive, dense central paragraph that crams multiple steps together, and a repetitive concluding paragraph that merely restates the introduction. Cohesive devices are sometimes mechanical or inaccurate, as seen in awkward transitions like 'initiates with the flow' and 'And after passing through series of steps'. The referencing of pronouns and spatial relationships between the day and night cycles is occasionally unclear, making it hard for the reader to follow the exact sequence of water movement between the high-level and low-level reservoirs. Overall cohesion is faulty and lacks sophisticated signposting.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

The student demonstrates an adequate vocabulary range for the task, attempting some process-related terminology such as 'hydroelectric power station', 'reversible turbines', 'national grid', and 'generator'. However, there are numerous lexical errors and awkward word choices throughout the text. Examples include 'process initiates with' instead of 'process initiates with' or 'process that initiates', 'water flow' instead of 'water flows', 'high level of reservoir' instead of 'high-level reservoir', and turbines 'pumped' instead of 'pump'. There are also repetitive phrases, such as reiterating the transport of electricity to the national grid in both the introduction and conclusion without adding new semantic value. These inaccuracies and limited lexical flexibility place the response squarely in the band 5 range.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but control over grammar is weak. There are frequent grammatical errors, particularly with verb forms, subject-verb agreement, and prepositions. Examples of errors include 'process initiates with the flow of water from river at day time driving towards power station' (missing articles and incorrect participle use), 'electricity transported' (missing auxiliary verb), 'water flow from the river' (tense mismatch), and 'further used' instead of 'further use'. Punctuation is generally basic, and sentence boundaries are sometimes blurred by run-on structures. While some simple sentences are clear, the high frequency of grammatical errors in complex formations restricts the score to a band 5.

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

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