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Writing Academic Task 1 Band 8.0 Example

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206 words AcademicTask 1Map

Task 1

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Ideas to explore

Summarise the overall pattern: the village grew substantially between 1868 and 1994.
Compare the stages of expansion: early development was limited, followed by growth around the centre and later in several outlying areas.
Mention transport changes accurately: the railway was built in 1909 and the motorway in 1970; the park and golf course remained a prominent mapped feature.

Suggested structure

Introduce the map, location and time span.
Give an overview of the main expansion and transport-related changes.
Describe the earliest period and development up to 1922.
Compare the 1922–1970 and 1970–1994 periods, including the directions of later growth.
Finish with a brief summary of the village’s expansion and continuing park and golf course.

Useful vocabulary & examples

built-up area: Land covered by buildings and developed settlement.
The built-up area was limited in the earliest period.
spread around the centre: Expanded outward in places close to the central area.
Development spread around the centre between 1883 and 1922.
in several separate areas: In a number of distinct locations rather than one continuous zone.
From 1970 to 1994, development appeared in several separate areas.
transport links: Routes or services that connect places, such as railways and motorways.
The map shows the railway and motorway as important transport links.

Task Prompt

Chorleywood is a village near London whose population has increased steadily since the middle of the nineteenth century. The map below shows the development of the village.

User Essay Analysis

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Band 8.0

The map above illustrates the development of Chorleywood village from 1868 to 1994. In 1868, Chorleywood village already had two main roads. The first main road was located along the western side of the village, while the second main road was situated along the northern side. By 1883, there was a population increase in the village, with residential development appearing around the existing roads. Overall, the built-up area expanded considerably, particularly after 1970, while Chorleywood Park and Golf Course remained an open area near the centre. By 1909, a railway had been built, running broadly from west to east through the southern part of the village, with a station near the existing roads. From 1922 to 1970, development spread to land on both sides of the railway, especially to the south-west and south-east of the station. The most extensive growth took place between 1970 and 1994. New residential areas appeared north and east of the park and golf course, as well as farther south-east. A motorway was also built in 1970, running roughly north to south on the eastern side and crossing an existing road at a roundabout. Overall, the road and rail links accompanied the village’s expansion, while the park and golf course remained undeveloped.

Targeted Improvement Tips

Separate information supplied in the task introduction from evidence shown on the map: describe changing built-up areas rather than implying the map gives population figures.

Use a concise overview to compare the earlier settlement with the more extensive growth after 1970, and mention that the park and golf course remained open.

Vary repeated passive phrases such as “was located” and “was situated” with precise active verbs, for example “ran” for roads and “spread” for development.

AI Feedback

Overall Band

8.0

Excellent

Words

206

Type

Map

Criteria Breakdown

Task Achievement

7.5 Band

The report covers the full period and identifies the key changes, including that growth was “particularly after 1970” and that a railway, station and motorway were added. It also notes the park’s continued presence. One point to handle carefully is “there was a population increase”: the map depicts development, not population figures. In future, distinguish the prompt’s population context from what the map itself shows, and describe changes in built-up areas directly.

Coherence & Cohesion

7.5 Band

The response moves in chronological order from 1868 through the later development periods, making the sequence easy to follow. “Overall” gives the reader a useful summary before the details, and the final sentence returns to the main pattern. The first two road descriptions are slightly repetitive in structure. To refine the organisation, group the railway and station with the 1883–1922 changes, then use a clear transition to the post-1970 expansion.

Lexical Resource

7.0 Band

The answer uses relevant map vocabulary, including “built-up area,” “railway,” “station,” and “roundabout,” and describes directions such as “south-west” and “north to south.” However, “located” and “situated” repeat the same idea in adjacent sentences, and “development” appears several times. A next step is to vary the verbs with accurate alternatives such as “ran,” “spread,” and “appeared,” while keeping descriptions of transport routes distinct from descriptions of residential growth.

Grammatical Range & Accuracy

7.5 Band

The response shows control of both simple and more developed sentence structures. For example, “while Chorleywood Park and Golf Course remained an open area near the centre” uses a subordinate clause effectively, and the past-tense descriptions are generally consistent. The main opportunity is stylistic rather than a major grammatical correction: “was located” and “was situated” make the road descriptions wordy. Try active constructions such as “the road ran…” and check that longer sentences remain easy to parse.

Topic Band Distribution

Band 9.03 examples

Band 8.03 examples

Band 7.03 examples

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Band 5.03 examples

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Writing Academic Task 1 Band 8.0 Example

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