The plans below show a harbour in 2000 and how it looks today.
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Sample Response
The plans show how Porth Harbourhow the Porth Harbour has been redesigned after the year 2000. OverallOveall, the harbour has undergone some noticeablenoticebale changes, including the addition of another dock and essential facilities.
Prior to the redesign, in 2000, on the north-east side of the harbourharboar was the dock for the passenger ferriesferies along with the public beach. OppositeOpposite of the dock, on the south, a small area was dedicatedsmall area has been dedicated to the Castle, which was no longerlonge in use. Next to the castle was another public beach. The road, which connected the west and the east sides of the map, endedRoad, which connected the west and the east sides of the map, ended near the coast with the space for the lifeboats. On the south-west side of the road was a car park and the area for fishing boats. Lastly, the north-westAnd lastly, north-west side of the harbour was dedicated to space for private yachts, next to which was the areaare for showers and the toilets along with the car park, which had a direct access to the main road.
In the redesigned layout, a second dock has been added onsecond dock has been added to the north-east side of the map. The castle, on the opposite side of the map, was replacedCatle, on the opposite side of the map was replaced by the hotel, and the public beach next to it has been replaced by the private one for the hotel. Next to the lifeboats, cafes and shops have been constructed. Also, on the west side areas for fishing boats and private yachts have swapped placesswitched side and the showers and toilets have been added next to both car parksthe both parking spaces.
Why this response received Band 6.5
The essay successfully outlines the key developments in Porth Harbour by contrasting the two maps and highlighting main structural changes. However, mechanical grammar errors, missing articles, and typos slightly detract from the overall clarity. Focusing on proofreading for basic article usage and subject-verb agreements will bring the greatest improvement.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Achievement
The response presents a clear overview and highlights the primary changes between the two dates, though minor details could be described more precisely.
Ensure spatial features and layout changes are accurately detailed using specific directional language.
Coherence and Cohesion
The information is logically organized into chronological paragraphs with clear overall progression.
Vary cohesive devices beyond simple sequential transition phrases to connect sentences more smoothly.
Lexical Resource
Vocabulary is generally adequate to describe the changes, but repeated spelling errors and accurate map labels lower the precision.
Review spelling of map vocabulary carefully to avoid typos like harboar, noticebale, and catle.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
A mix of simple and complex structures is attempted, but missing articles and occasional grammatical lapses occur frequently.
Practice using definite and indefinite articles correctly when introducing map features.