Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · 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 5.5)
The diagram illustrates the distinct stages of generation of electricity in a hydroelectric power station.
Overall, this is a linear process that initiates with the flow of water from a river at daytime driving towards the power station. And after passing through series of steps, electricity is transported to the national grid through power lines.
Initially, the process begins when water flows from the river to a dam containing high-level of reservoir. The water is released by opening the dam gates specifically at daytime, while the reverse is followed at night. The water is driven in the 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 daytime and low-level reservoir is collected in small channels, while at night turbines is pumped water in to high-level reservoir where it can be stored for further use.
The diagram depicts the electricity generation process at the hydroelectric power station and after the production the electricity is transported to the national grid through power lines.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The student covers the main stages of the hydroelectric power station process diagram well, noting key elements such as the high-level reservoir, dam intake, reversible turbines, generator, and national grid. An overview is successfully provided, pointing out that it is a cyclical or linear process involving electricity generation during the day and pumping at night. However, there are some inaccuracies and confusions in reporting specific mechanical details, such as stating that the 'low-level reservoir is collected in small channels' rather than water flowing into it, and some slight repetition in the final paragraph. Overall, the response addresses all parts of the task adequately, meeting the requirements for a Band 6.5 or 7.0; here, it is awarded a solid Band 6.0 due to some minor inaccuracies in reporting the visual details.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The response is arranged coherently with a clear overall structure, featuring an introductory paragraph, an overview, a body paragraph detailing the process, and a concluding summary. Cohesive devices such as 'Initially', 'while', 'at daytime', and 'at night' are used to sequence the stages chronologically and contrast day versus night operations. However, some referencing is slightly awkward or unclear, such as 'dam containing high-level of reservoir' and the repetitive ending in the final paragraph. Paragraphing is present, but the division could be improved since the final summary paragraph essentially reiterates information already stated without adding new developmental value. Consequently, the organization shows clear logical progression overall but suffers from mechanical or repetitive phrasing.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary suitable for describing a technical process, attempting terms such as 'hydroelectric power station', 'reversible turbines', 'national grid', and 'conduit' (implied). There are, however, noticeable word choice and collocation errors throughout the text, such as 'high-level of reservoir' instead of 'a high-level reservoir', 'turbines is pumped water' instead of 'water is pumped by the turbines', and 'at daytime' rather than 'during the day'. While these lexical inaccuracies and awkward phrasing occasionally hinder precision, communication is not severely impeded, allowing the student to achieve a Band 6.0 for this criterion.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, utilizing relative clauses and conjunctions (e.g., 'The water is released by opening the dam gates specifically at daytime, while the reverse is followed at night'). However, grammatical control is inconsistent, and several errors occur, including subject-verb agreement issues ('turbines is pumped water'), missing articles ('in the power station'), and awkward passive/active constructions ('low-level reservoir is collected in small channels'). While these errors do not completely obscure the meaning, they are frequent enough to prevent the writing from reaching Band 7.0, making Band 6.0 the most accurate descriptor for grammatical accuracy.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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