Band 4.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 4.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-09-30
IELTS Writing Task 1 question
The take below gives information about the underground railway systems in six cities.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.
Underground Railway Systems
City Date opened Kilometers of route Passengers per year (in millions) London 1863 394 775 Paris 1900 199 1191 Tokyo 1927 155 1927 Washington DC 1976 126 144 Kyoto 1981 11 45 Los Angeles 2001 28 50
Student answer (Band 4.5)
The information about the underground railway station systems in six cities. The information by we summarize by selecting and reporting the main features, and we make comparisons where relevent.
So first of all we talk about the London the railway was opened in 1863 it's route was about 394km and about 775 million people travel by this railway line per year.
Secondly we discuss about the paris railways system it was established in 1900 it's rout was about 199km and passengers per year travelled per year by this railway line are about 775 million.
The next one is Tokyo railway line it was developed in 1927 it's rout was about 155km and about 1927 million people travelled by this railway every year.
The next one is Washington DC it was opened on 1976 it's rout about 126km and the passengers travelled by this railway are about 144 million per year.
The second last term of Kyoto it was opened in 1981 it's rout about 11km and about 45 million people travelled by this railway line are about 45 million.
The last term is about the Los Angeles it was opened in 2001 and latest one it's root about 28km and about 50 million people travelled by this railway line.
It is the complete decription of railways systems we have discussed.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 4.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 4.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 4.0 |
| Overall | 4.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0
The response attempts to present the data from the table regarding the underground railway systems in six cities, mentioning the opening dates, route lengths, and passenger numbers. However, the student has simply copied or very closely paraphrased the prompt and instructions rather than formulating a proper introductory overview, which severely impacts the development of the task. Furthermore, there are significant factual errors in reporting the data: for Paris, the passenger number is incorrectly stated as 775 million instead of 1191 million, and for Kyoto, the figure of 45 million is repeated awkwardly. Because the key features are not accurately selected and compared as a whole, the task is only partially addressed, aligning with a Band 5 performance.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.0
The response lacks effective paragraphing, being written almost as a single continuous block of text or a series of repetitive, mechanical sentences starting with phrases like 'So first of all' and 'The next one is'. There is no clear overall progression or logical grouping of information. Cohesive devices are extremely basic and repetitive, relying heavily on sequential transitions like 'Secondly', 'The next one is', and 'The last term'. Reference pronouns are sometimes unclear, and the lack of proper paragraph separation makes the text difficult to follow. These features reflect Band 4 in terms of organization and cohesion.
Lexical Resource: Band 4.0
The vocabulary used is very basic, repetitive, and heavily dependent on words lifted directly from the prompt, such as 'underground railway systems', 'cities', 'opened', 'kilometers of route', and 'passengers per year'. There are numerous lexical and spelling errors throughout the text, including 'relevent', 'paris' (uncapitalized), 'rout', and 'decription'. The student does not demonstrate the ability to use less common vocabulary or paraphrase effectively, restricting the range of vocabulary to a minimally adequate level for basic communication, which corresponds to Band 4.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 4.0
The writing exhibits a very limited range of grammatical structures, consisting mainly of simple, repetitive sentences joined loosely or containing severe punctuation and structural errors, such as comma splices and fragment sentences (e.g., 'The information about the underground railway station systems in six cities.'). There are frequent grammatical errors, including incorrect verb tenses, missing prepositions, and faulty subject-verb agreement (e.g., 'passengers per year travelled... are about 775 million'). Complex structures are virtually absent and error-free sentences are rare, placing this response firmly at Band 4.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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