Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-08-28
IELTS Writing Task 1 question
You work at home and have a problem with a piece of equipment that you use for your job.
Write a letter to the shop or company which supplied the equipment. In your letter
- describe the problem with the equipment
- explain how this problem is affecting your work
- say what you want the shop or company to do
You do NOT need to write any addresses.
Begin your letter as follows:
Dear Sir or Madam,
Student answer (Band 5.5)
Dear IT department ,
Good morning.
This is Mack from HR department Hope you all had a wonderful weekend.Im writing this email with regards to the mouse which was given to me on last Friday.I was trying to connect to my laptop but it shows an error and I’m currently facing issue to connect the mouse to my laptop and having problems with the mouse.
The mouse is effecting the work which I was supposed to complete and present today in a group teams meeting at 2 pm unfortunately I was not able to connect to my laptop and I had to cancel the meeting with the team.
I would like the IT team to check on it and fix the issue for me. I am attaching the pictures of the model and the mouse for your reference kindly do the needful.
Looking forward to hear from you.
Thanks.
Regards,
Melisha
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 6.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0
The response addresses all three bullet points of the prompt: describing the problem, explaining the impact on work, and stating the desired action. The tone is appropriate for a workplace communication, although the opening is slightly informal. The ideas are relevant and clearly presented, covering the technical issue with the mouse and the resulting cancellation of a meeting. To reach a higher band, the student could provide more specific details about the nature of the error or the specific model of the equipment to demonstrate a more comprehensive development of the task requirements.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The letter follows a logical progression, moving from the introduction to the problem, its impact, and finally the requested solution. Paragraphing is used, though the structure is somewhat fragmented. Cohesive devices are present but basic, such as 'The mouse is...' and 'I would like...'. There is a reliance on simple sentence structures, which limits the flow. To improve, the student should use a wider range of linking words and transition phrases to connect ideas more fluidly between sentences and paragraphs, rather than relying on simple, repetitive sentence starts.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The vocabulary is adequate for the task but lacks variety and precision. Phrases like 'facing issue' and 'do the needful' are somewhat repetitive or rely on common workplace clichés rather than precise, natural English. The student uses basic vocabulary to describe the technical problem. To achieve a higher score, the student should incorporate more precise terminology related to technical support (e.g., 'malfunctioning,' 'connectivity issues,' 'troubleshoot') and avoid informal or redundant phrasing. The range is sufficient to communicate the message clearly, but it does not demonstrate the flexibility required for higher bands.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The response contains a mix of simple and complex sentences, but there are frequent grammatical errors. For example, 'effecting' should be 'affecting,' and there are issues with punctuation and capitalization, such as 'Im' instead of 'I am' and the lack of proper spacing after commas. The sentence 'I was trying to connect to my laptop but it shows an error' contains a tense inconsistency. While these errors do not impede overall communication, they occur frequently enough to prevent a higher score. Increasing the variety of complex structures and proofreading for basic punctuation would significantly improve the accuracy.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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