The map below shows the changes that have taken palce at the waterfront area of a town calles Darwin between 2009 and 2014.
Sample Response
The maps illustrate how a waterfront area of a town called
Darwin changed from 2009 to 2014.
Overall, the most significant changes can be seen in the central area of the town, where all of the industrial areas were removed, and thereafter the town was mainly used for residential purposes. Meanwhile, most of the facilities surrounding the lake remained unchanged.
Over the course of five years, the school, convention center, fishing area to the north and the two swimming pools to the south of the lake remained intact. In the southern area, a footpath stretching from the western main road has been constructed providing access to the harbour. A third swimming pool was also constructed between the lake and the school, replacing the industrial area previously located there.
On the western side of the area, a new building was built for university education, while three new blocks of residential buildings were erected, raising the total number of buildings to six. The area to the south, previously an industrial area, was replaced with vegetation.
IELTS Writing Correction
- 1. Summarize mixed redevelopment Original: mainly used for residential purposes Suggested revision: redeveloped for residential, educational and recreational uses Why it matters: The 2014 map also shows a university building, harbour, pool and extensive vegetation.
- 2. Correct map direction Original: north Suggested revision: east Why it matters: The fishing area is shown on the eastern side of both maps.
- 3. Correct pool locations Original: the two swimming pools to the south of the lake Suggested revision: the two existing swimming pools Why it matters: The two original pools remain, but they are not both south of the lake.
- 4. Avoid repeated verb Original: constructed Suggested revision: added Why it matters: Added describes the new facility clearly while avoiding repetition of constructed.
- 5. Use concise term Original: new building was built for university education Suggested revision: university building was constructed Why it matters: This concise noun phrase expresses the same map feature more naturally.
- 6. Remove redundancy Original: three new blocks of residential buildings Suggested revision: three new residential blocks Why it matters: Residential blocks already conveys that these are groups of buildings.
- 7. Specify residential total Original: raising the total number of buildings to six Suggested revision: bringing the total number of residential blocks to six Why it matters: The total of six refers specifically to residential blocks, not every building on the map.
- 8. Sentence rewrite Original: In the southern area, a footpath stretching from the western main road has been constructed providing access to the harbour. Suggested revision: In the southern area, a footpath was constructed from the western main road to provide access to the harbour. Why it matters: The rewrite uses consistent past tense and clearly expresses the footpath's purpose.
- 9. Sentence rewrite Original: The area to the south, previously an industrial area, was replaced with vegetation. Suggested revision: The former industrial area in the south was converted into a green space. Why it matters: An area is converted to a new use, and this wording describes the map change precisely.
Suggested Rewrites
- mainly used for residential purposes redeveloped for residential, educational and recreational uses
- north east
- the two swimming pools to the south of the lake the two existing swimming pools
- constructed added
- new building was built for university education university building was constructed
- three new blocks of residential buildings three new residential blocks
Why this response received Band 8.0
The response gives a clear, well-organized account of the redevelopment and uses precise language to highlight both removals and additions. Its main limitation is a small degree of spatial and temporal imprecision, particularly describing both retained pools as south of the lake and implying the entire harbour footpath was new. Refine these details by distinguishing retained features from extensions and locating changes more exactly.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Achievement
The response presents a strong overview and covers almost all major retained, removed, and added features, with only minor spatial imprecision.
State that the existing footpath was extended to the harbour and locate the retained swimming pools more precisely around the lake.
Coherence and Cohesion
Information progresses logically from unchanged features to additions and land-use changes, with clear paragraphing and controlled cohesion.
Keep closely related location details together so each comparison between 2009 and 2014 is immediately traceable.
Lexical Resource
A wide and precise range, including remained intact, erected, and vegetation, describes the map naturally with strong control.
Refine spatial phrasing further by distinguishing west, northeast, and southeast positions around the lake.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
The response uses varied complex structures accurately, with only minor tense and punctuation lapses that do not impede communication.
Maintain consistent past tense for completed changes and add punctuation where participial clauses could otherwise read ambiguously.
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IELTS Academic Writing Task 1
The map below shows the changes that have taken palce at the waterfront area of a town calles Darwin between 2009 and 2014.
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.