Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 14 · 2026-09-20

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 demonstrates the production of electricity in a hydroelectric power station.

The process starts with water coming from the river to the high-level reservoir. Close to high-level reservoir dam is situated. Here, the dam has a water intake which is open during the day and closed at night. When the dam intake is open during the daytime, the water flows forward to generate electricity, reaching the reversible turbines. This reversible turbines perform two function, one when water reaches the reversible turbines it operate generator at the power station. Fromwhere the electricity is supplied to the various power lines and then to the national grid. Second, it pump the water from the low-level reservoir back to the high-level reservoir during the night so that it can be reused for the electricity production once again.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0

The student provides a generally accurate description of the hydroelectric power station process, detailing the key stages from the river and high-level reservoir, through the intake and reversible turbines, to the generator and national grid, while also capturing the day and night operational differences. However, the response is incomplete because it fails to mention the low-level reservoir on the right side of the diagram, omitting a major component of the recycling cycle. Furthermore, the length requirement of 150 words was not met, as the text contains only 134 words. These factors restrict the task achievement score to Band 5.0.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The text demonstrates a basic logical progression, following the chronological steps of the process from the river to the national grid. Cohesive devices are used to guide the reader through the stages, such as 'The process starts with', 'Here', and 'When the dam intake is open'. However, the formatting is weak as the entire response is written in a single paragraph instead of being properly paragraphed. Additionally, referencing is occasionally imprecise, such as 'This reversible turbines perform two function', where plural agreement and pronoun clarity fail. Coherence is sufficient to follow, but paragraphing issues and mechanical cohesion limit the score to Band 5.5.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary relevant to the diagram, such as 'production of electricity', 'reservoir', 'intake', 'turbines', and 'national grid'. However, there are notable word-choice and collocation errors, such as 'reaching the reversible turbines', 'These reversible turbines perform two function', and 'Fromwhere the electricity is supplied'. Repetition of phrases like 'reversible turbines' also occurs frequently. Less common vocabulary is attempted with limited accuracy, placing this response firmly in the Band 5.0 category.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, such as conditional-like time clauses ('When the dam intake is open during the daytime, the water flows forward...'). However, grammatical accuracy is noticeably weak. There are frequent errors in subject-verb agreement ('This reversible turbines perform two function'), missing articles ('Close to high-level reservoir dam is situated'), spelling errors ('Fromwhere'), and awkward phrasing. These frequent errors occasionally cause difficulty for the reader, matching the descriptor for Band 5.0.

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

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