Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 14 · 2026-10-20

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 6.5)

The diagram illustrates the step-by-step process of electricity generation in a hydroelectric power station.

Overall, several stages are involved in this process, consist of different tools and infrastructure from the high-level water storage to the low-level reservoir. Moreover, water is reused instead of throwing it in drainage system.

Initially, water is stored in a high-level reservoir from a river and it is flown by a inclined pipeline during the day when the intake is opened to allow water flow. After that, the water reaches to reversible turbines and creates the potentiality to rotate the turbines. The rotation of turbines operates generator to produce electricity and the produced electricity is supplied to national by power lines.

On the other hand, water is stored in the low-level reservoir after operating the turbines in order to reuse. During the night, the reversible turbines work a pump and take the water from low-level reservoir to high-level reservoir through the same inclined pipeline, while the intake is closed.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

You cover the main operating cycle and give a relevant overview: water moves from the high-level reservoir through the turbines by day, then is pumped back from the low-level reservoir at night. The account also includes the generator and transmission to the national grid. This addresses the task well, and the day/night contrast is a useful feature. Some details are less fully or precisely explained, however: the intake’s daytime opening and nighttime closure are mentioned, but the role of the dam and the route from the turbines into the low-level reservoir could be clearer. The overview’s point that water is reused is accurate, though it could more directly summarise the station’s two-way operation. More precise coverage of these stages would strengthen the response.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The response is arranged in a clear sequence: an introduction, an overview, the daytime process, and then the nighttime cycle. Transitions such as “Initially,” “After that,” and “On the other hand” help readers follow the stages, and the contrast between daytime generation and nighttime pumping is easy to identify. Some linking is mechanical, and a few references are not fully clear; for example, “water is stored in the low-level reservoir after operating the turbines” compresses the movement into the reservoir and could be more explicit. The overview also combines several points in one sentence. To improve progression further, group the two operating modes distinctly and use more precise links to show where water moves next, rather than relying mainly on sequence markers.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use relevant process vocabulary, including “high-level reservoir,” “reversible turbines,” “generator,” “intake,” and “power lines,” which makes the stages recognisable. There is also some attempt at less common wording, such as “potentiality,” but several choices are inaccurate or unnatural for this context: “it is flown,” “creates the potentiality,” “supplied to national,” and “work a pump.” “Throwing it in drainage system” is also an informal and imprecise way to describe water being discharged. These choices do not prevent the reader from understanding the overall process, but they limit precision and naturalness. Prefer standard process collocations such as “flows,” “drives the turbines,” “is transmitted to the national grid,” and “is pumped back.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and more complex sentence forms, including a time clause in “during the day when the intake is opened” and a contrastive sentence beginning “On the other hand.” The overall meaning remains understandable, but some grammatical errors recur. For example, “several stages are involved in this process, consist of” has an incorrect clause structure; “from a river” needs a clearer grammatical link to the reservoir; and “the reversible turbines work a pump and take the water” has problems with article use and sentence construction. There are also errors in verb forms and agreement, as in “it is flown” and “turbines work.” Aim to make each clause complete and check articles, verb forms, and agreement, while retaining the complex structures you attempt.

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

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