Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-11-04

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 6.0)

The diagram illustrates the changes of floor plan 20 years ago and how it looks recently.

Overall, the CD'S, videos, computer games have been replaced. Similar to children's book, reading room and enquiry desk. The adult fiction books remained the same together with new ones whereas the adult non-fiction books has been removed.

20 years ago, starting from the entrance the library had a reading room to the left and enquiry desk to the right. It also had tables and chairs in the center of the structure from where we can see the adult fiction and non-fiction books to either side. On the top of the adult non fiction was children's books while above the fiction was CDs, videos, computer games

From now, at the entry point the reading room and enquiry desk had been replaced by computer room and cafe. And in the center of the layout the library now has a foyer, the left and right side of the large space had been allocated to all reference books and adult fiction books, information desk and self-service machines. On the top of both sides the lecture room replaced children's book and the gaming room had been changed to children's playtime.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify several major changes, including the removal of the central tables and the addition of a computer room and café, and you provide an overview of how the library has been reorganised. However, some key details are inaccurate or unclear, which limits how fully the plan is reported. The children’s books area became a lecture room, while the former CDs and games room became a children’s fiction and storytelling room; “children’s playtime” does not accurately describe the latter. You also say the enquiry desk and reading room were “similar” to their former arrangement, although both were replaced. The overview would be stronger if it clearly summarised the main changes and distinguished what was removed, relocated, or newly added.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, an overview, and separate descriptions of the earlier and current layouts. This gives the reader a generally coherent route through the comparison. However, some connections between details are difficult to follow. For example, “On the top of the adult non fiction was children's books while above the fiction was CDs…” requires the reader to infer which side of the plan is meant. The overview’s short fragments, such as “Similar to children's book, reading room and enquiry desk,” also interrupt the progression and leave the relationship between the two plans unclear. Use clearer spatial signposting, such as “on the left/right” and “at the rear,” and connect each change directly to its former location.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use a reasonable range of vocabulary for describing a floor plan, including “replaced,” “allocated,” “center,” and “entry point.” These choices help communicate the broad reorganisation. Some wording is imprecise or unnatural, however: “the changes of floor plan” is less idiomatic than “changes to the floor plan,” and “children’s playtime” does not name the storytelling-events area shown. “Foyer” is also an interpretation rather than the label provided, and “new ones” does not clearly identify what remained or was added. Aim for precise labels from the diagram and use standard collocations for describing locations and changes. This would make the account more exact without requiring a more elaborate vocabulary.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and more complex sentences, including the comparison “while above the fiction was…” and the longer description beginning “the left and right side…”. Meaning is generally recoverable, but some grammatical errors make relationships less clear. For example, “the adult non-fiction books has been removed” has a subject–verb agreement error, and “the left and right side … had been allocated” needs plural agreement (“sides”). Tense use is also inconsistent in “From now” and “had been replaced” when describing the current plan. The overview contains an incomplete sentence, “Similar to children's book, reading room and enquiry desk.” Use complete clauses and keep past forms for the former plan and present forms for the current one.

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