Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 14 · 2026-09-25
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 from Hydroelectric power station.
Overall, the entire electricity generation process is divided into 6 steps, starting from the flow of river to the end at Low-level reservoir.
At first, the river water reaches to High-level reservoir, where the Dam has constructed in a corner. Then, the water starts to move from the a right corner of the Dam which opens in a daytime and closes night. In a daytime, the waterflow generates the power through generator. Eventually, the highly pressured waterflow spins the turbine of a generator. which produces an electricity and sends to the Power Station to distribute the generated power through power lines.
On the other hand, in a day, the water get stored in a Low-level reservoir. After that, in a night, the flow of water will be reverted through pumping. At that time, the water, which has been stored in to Low-level reservoir pumped to the High-level reservoir, This time the reversed flow also spins the turbine. This process goes on everyday.
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 successfully highlights the main features of the hydroelectric power station process, covering both day and night operations as shown in the diagram. An overview is provided, stating that the process is divided into six steps from the river to the low-level reservoir. However, there are some inaccuracies and omissions in tracing the exact sequence; for instance, stating 'the water gets stored in a Low-level reservoir' during the day misses the complete cyclical nature of the reversible pumping system. Furthermore, minor details are slightly confused, such as 'Dam has constructed' and the precise mechanics of the intake opening and closing. Despite these minor misreadings, the key stages of electricity generation and water pumping are adequately reported.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5
The response is organized into logical paragraphs, beginning with an introduction, followed by an overview, and then body paragraphs separating daytime generation and night-time pumping. Cohesive devices such as 'At first', 'Then', 'Eventually', and 'On the other hand' are employed to guide the reader through the process steps. However, paragraphing and referencing are occasionally mechanical or slightly unclear, as seen in the sentence fragment '.which produces an electricity' and the transition into the night cycle. Overall, the arrangement is coherent, but the transitions lack the sophisticated flexibility found at higher band levels.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.5
The student attempts a range of process-related vocabulary, including terms like 'hydroelectric power station', 'high-level reservoir', 'reversible turbines', and 'generator'. However, there are noticeable word choice and collocation errors throughout the text, such as 'the Dam has constructed' instead of 'a dam has been constructed', 'reaches to High-level reservoir' instead of 'reaches the high-level reservoir', and 'in a night' instead of 'at night'. While the vocabulary is adequate to convey the basic process, these inaccuracies and awkward phrasing restrict the score to a band 5.5.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5
The essay displays a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, attempting relative clauses and conditional-like time markers (e.g., 'the water, which has been stored in to Low-level reservoir pumped to the High-level reservoir'). However, the text contains frequent grammatical errors, particularly with passive voice formation, prepositions, and punctuation. Examples include 'the water starts to move from the a right corner', punctuation error with a full stop before 'which produces an electricity', and missing auxiliary verbs. These errors require some effort to decode, though they do not completely impede overall communication.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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