Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-10-14

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 5.5)

The picture illustrates the development of a public library in a 20 years period.

Overall, there are different additions and changes to the existing rooms following the development of the use of technology through the years.

Instead of two areas related to adults fiction and none fiction books with a seating area after 20 years there is one area for adults books that also contains an information desk and self-service machines and on the west side its an area for all reference books.

the children's books room is now in the place of the CDs videos computer games room which also became larger with the addition of sofas and an area for storytelling events.

the reading room and enquiry desk are now respectively computer room and a café.

after twenty years the children books room became the lecture room. these changes show how much the development through the years has affected the central library.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You identify the main transformation from the earlier layout to the current one, including the replacement of the central seating area with an adult-fiction area containing an information desk and self-service machines. You also report several room changes, such as the reading room becoming a computer room and the enquiry area becoming a café. However, some details are inaccurate or unclear: the children’s books room became the lecture room, while the former CDs/videos/games room became the children’s fiction and storytelling room; your account reverses these changes. The overview is relevant but broad, and the final claim about technology affecting the library is not as informative as summarising the major spatial changes. More precise comparisons would make the response more complete.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

The response has a recognisable overall structure: an introduction, a general overview and descriptions of changes. Linking expressions such as “Overall,” “Instead of” and “after twenty years” help signal comparison. However, the progression between details is not consistently clear, and several changes are presented as separate, loosely connected statements rather than grouped by location or function. The long opening comparison beginning “Instead of two areas…” is difficult to follow, while the lower-case starts after full stops and the lack of paragraph breaks weaken the presentation. Organise the body into clear paragraphs—for example, one for the left side and one for the right—and use precise references such as “the former…” to make the sequence easier to track.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use a suitable range of vocabulary for describing a library plan, including “additions,” “existing rooms,” “seating area,” “information desk” and “self-service machines.” These choices communicate the general nature of the changes, and the response attempts to describe both functions and locations. Some wording is imprecise or awkward, however: “in a 20 years period” and “the development of the use of technology” are not natural formulations, while “adults fiction and none fiction books” is unclear and contains inaccurate forms. Use standard labels consistently, such as “adult fiction” and “adult non-fiction,” and choose concise map language such as “was converted into” or “was replaced by.” This would improve precision without requiring more elaborate vocabulary.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mixture of simple statements and more complex comparisons, including “Instead of… there is…” and “which also became larger…”. The main changes can generally be understood, but some grammatical errors and punctuation problems remain. For example, “in a 20 years period” has an incorrect noun phrase, and “on the west side its an area” lacks the apostrophe and has an awkward sentence structure. The sentence beginning “Instead of two areas…” is also difficult to control because its comparison and clause structure are unclear. Capitalisation after full stops is inconsistent, and several sentences run together without clear punctuation. Practise accurate past-tense comparison structures, such as “The former reading room was converted into a computer room.”

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

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