The maps show art gallery in Australia in 1950 and now.
Sample Response
The two maps show the layoutssite plans and layout of an Australian art gallery in 1950 and the present day.
Overall, the gallery is organized into a central area, an east wing and a west wing, each having about the same square footage. This basic configuration has not changedhas not been changed, but the courtyard on the north side of the building in 1950 was incorporated into the gallery itself, creating two new gallery spaces in the central area and east wing as well as an art school for children in the west wing.
In detail, the west wing still contains the bookshop, café and temporary exhibition space that was in the older plan. However, the caféHowever the café has been reduced in sizeis reduced in size and a toilet has been addedand a toilet added. The entrance, in the center of the south side of the building, leads to the largest area, reserved for sculptures. Behind it, the area which was formerly the courtyard has a new gallery fora new place for exhibiting Australian Aboriginalaboriginal art. Significant changes were madeThere were significant changes made in the east wing. The space for Australian art was transferred to the former courtyard area and in its place Asian art is displayed. The two areas for European art have not been altered.
Why this response received Band 8.0
The response gives a clear, well-selected account of the gallery's development, with an effective overview and accurate coverage of the retained and newly introduced spaces. Its main limitation is that a few descriptions are slightly imprecise, especially the claim that each wing has about the same area. The best improvement would be to describe spatial relationships more exactly while retaining the concise comparative structure.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Achievement
A clear overview and detailed comparisons accurately cover nearly all the important changes and retained features.
Avoid the unsupported equal-area claim and describe the building's expansion into the former courtyard more precisely.
Coherence and Cohesion
Information is logically organised from the overview to a clear west-centre-east description, with smooth progression.
Make the transition from retained western features to the central and eastern changes slightly more explicit.
Lexical Resource
Vocabulary is varied and generally precise, including effective terms for spatial layout, transfer and incorporation.
Replace vague wording such as 'a new place' with a more exact term such as 'a new gallery area'.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
A wide range of sentence structures is used accurately, and minor lapses do not impede communication.
Polish the few compressed structures by writing 'However, the café was reduced in size and a toilet was added.'
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IELTS Academic Writing Task 1
The maps show art gallery in Australia in 1950 and now.
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.