Band 4.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 4.0 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-11-13

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The diagram below shows the floor plan of a public library 20 years ago and how it looks now.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

Central Library 20 years ago

Student answer (Band 4.0)

The diagram illustrates the artitectural plan of a public library 20 years ago and how it cahnged these days.

Overall, almost all the rooms are altered with the time however, the main feature in the picture of 20years ago their are tables and chairs in the middle if the library. Nowadays, sitting area is removed and many modifications are included.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 3.0

You identify the broad subject and one important change: the central tables and chairs have been removed. However, the response gives almost no account of the library’s other major changes, such as the new computer room, café, lecture room, storytelling area, or the relocation and renaming of book sections. The overview is also unclear: “almost all the rooms are altered” is too general to show the main pattern of change. The response is substantially below the required 150 words; 11 words copied from the task prompt are excluded from the count. To improve, write a clear overview and describe several specific, accurate changes, comparing the old and current layouts.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.5

The response has a basic progression: it introduces the diagrams, gives an overall statement, and then mentions the central seating change. The use of “Overall” and “Nowadays” helps signal this movement. However, the answer is only one short paragraph, and the ideas are not developed into a clear comparison of the two plans. The contrast between the former seating area and the current layout is mentioned but not connected to other changes, so progression is limited. Organise the response into an introduction, an overview, and one or two paragraphs grouping changes by location or function. Use linking phrases such as “whereas” and “in addition” to make the comparisons explicit.

Lexical Resource: Band 4.5

You use some relevant vocabulary for describing a plan, including “architectural plan,” “rooms,” “tables and chairs,” and “sitting area.” These choices make the general topic understandable. However, the range is very limited, and several spelling or word-choice problems reduce accuracy: “artitectural” and “cahnged” are misspelled, while “changed these days” is not a natural way to describe the current layout. “Modifications are included” is also vague and does not identify what has changed. Build a more precise set of map-description terms, such as “converted into,” “relocated,” “replaced by,” and “enclosed room,” and use them to report specific features rather than relying on general words like “altered” and “modifications.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 4.5

You attempt a compound sentence with “however” and use time expressions to contrast the two plans, showing some effort to connect ideas. However, control is uneven. In “almost all the rooms are altered with the time however,” the tense and sentence connection are faulty; a clearer form would be “almost all the rooms have changed over time. However, …”. The clause “the main feature … their are tables and chairs” has an incorrect verb form and an unclear structure. The final sentence also lacks an article in “Nowadays, sitting area is removed.” Use accurate present and past forms to distinguish the two layouts, and check sentence boundaries, articles, and subject–verb agreement. More varied, controlled sentence patterns would make the comparisons easier to follow.

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

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