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 process of electricity generation in a hydroelectric station,which operates in two cycles during day and night to produce the electricity from water using the different turbines.

Overall,the system consist of high level reservior,power station with turbine and generator and also low level reservoir.Water is used to generates electricity during day and is pumped back at night.The simple way of produced the electricity daily.

During the day the high level reservoir is open.Water flow from high level resevoir to down the power station to turn the turbine,and generates the electricity.The electricity transfer to power lines to grind.The production of electricity is started.

At night,the whole process is reversed.The intake is closed.The water flow back to the low level reservoir to the high level resevoir.In this way they store the water for the next day electricity production.The whole processes is repeated every single day to produce the electricity.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The student successfully identifies the main features of the hydroelectric power station process, describing both the day and night cycles. The overview mentions the key components such as the high-level reservoir, power station, and low-level reservoir. However, there are some inaccuracies in reporting the process details, such as stating that 'the high level reservoir is open' during the day rather than the intake, and confusing the direction of water flow at night. Additionally, the phrase 'grind' instead of 'grid' demonstrates a misreading of the visual data. These minor omissions and inaccuracies place the response at Band 6.0.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The response has a coherent overall arrangement, divided into an introduction, an overview, and separate paragraphs for the day and night operations. However, cohesion is sometimes faulty or mechanical. For example, missing articles ('consist of high level reservior') and awkward transitions ('The simple way of produced the electricity daily') disrupt the flow. Paragraphing is attempted, but sentence-level linking lacks flexibility. Pronoun referencing is occasionally unclear, such as 'In this way they store the water'. Overall, the organization is clear enough to follow, matching Band 6.0 descriptors.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, attempting process-related terms like 'reservoir', 'turbines', 'generator', and 'intake'. However, there are notable word choice errors and spelling issues, such as 'reservior', 'generates' instead of 'generation', and 'grind' instead of 'grid'. Less common vocabulary is attempted with some inaccuracy ('produced the electricity' instead of 'producing electricity'). These lexical errors do not completely impede communication, placing the response firmly at Band 6.0.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The response features a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, such as 'The diagram illustrates the process of electricity generation... which operates in two cycles...'. However, there are frequent grammatical errors, particularly with subject-verb agreement ('the system consist'), missing articles ('high level reservior'), and incorrect verb forms ('way of produced'). Punctuation is generally acceptable, but grammatical inaccuracies occur in nearly every sentence, restricting the score to Band 5.0.

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

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