The diagram below shows the process for recycling plastic bottles.

Same questionCompare 2 different answers (Band 5.5–8)

Sample Response

1

The givenyielded diagram reveals the stages in plastic bottlebottles recycling.

2

Overall, it can be seen that this is a cyclone process; plastic bottles recycling has various stages, from collecting the plastic to making products.

3

In the first stage, collect plastic bottles from dustbin thrown by a citizen, this work is done by trucks or lorry. In the third stage, the collected bottles are sortedcollected bottles sort in the recycling centre by workerslabour. In the next stage, those bottles are recyclable, and those make into blocks by compressing and later crushed by a machine. As a result, they are turned intothey turn into plastic pieces that are washed in waterthat wash in water.

4

In the sixth stage, the washed plastic pieces are ground to produce plastic pelletsfor producing plastic pellets grinding washed plastic pieces which are then heatedafter that yield specific heat. In the eighth stage, they becomeit becomes rawrow material which is usedwhich uses for producing new plastic productsplastic items or other products such as a t-shirt. After this stage, people throw the product into the dustbin after useusage, and the recycling cycle can begin againthe later process is the same.

Overall assessment

Why this response received Band 5.5

The response identifies the process as cyclical and traces nearly all major stages in a generally recognizable order. Its main limitation is pervasive grammatical and lexical inaccuracy, which makes several descriptions of sorting, pellet production, heating, and raw-material formation difficult to follow. The highest priority is to describe each stage with accurate passive verb forms and precise process vocabulary while preserving the clear start-to-finish sequence.

Band score breakdown

IELTS Writing Criteria Scores

TA

Task Achievement

6.0
Scoring rule

The response provides a valid overview and covers almost every stage, although several operations are expressed imprecisely and the rejection of unsuitable bottles is not clearly reported.

Next step

Describe the nine stages accurately in sequence, including sorting out non-recyclable bottles and heating pellets to create raw material.

CC

Coherence and Cohesion

5.5
Scoring rule

The overview and two body paragraphs give the process a recognizable progression, but stage numbering and some sentence connections are confusing.

Next step

Use consistent sequencing expressions and give each sentence one clearly ordered stage or closely linked pair of stages.

LR

Lexical Resource

5.0
Scoring rule

Relevant process vocabulary is attempted, but frequent inaccurate choices such as "cyclone," "yielded," and "row material" reduce precision.

Next step

Use exact process terms such as cyclical, collected, sorted, compressed, crushed, washed, heated, and raw material.

GRA

Grammatical Range and Accuracy

5.0
Scoring rule

Frequent errors in articles, verb forms, agreement, and clause construction cause strain, although the main sequence remains understandable.

Next step

Build complete passive sentences for each stage, for example, "The bottles are sorted and then compressed into blocks."

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IELTS Academic Writing Task 1

The diagram below shows the process for recycling plastic bottles.

Your response

Words0
20:00

Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.