Two maps – three answers compared

A Task 1 pair of maps answered at around Band 5.5, 6.5 and 8. See why describing each map separately fails, how to organise by change, and how to upgrade the language of change.

A map question gives you two pictures and asks you to compare them. The commonest weak answer describes the first map, then describes the second, and leaves the reader to find the differences. The best answers do the finding for the reader. This lesson shows the difference on one pair of maps.

The task

Writing Task 1. You should spend about 20 minutes on this task.

The two maps below show the village of Ashworth in 1995 and at present.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

Write at least 150 words.

There are no images in this course, so each map is described in words. On both maps north is at the top. The High Street runs across the middle of the map from west to east, and a railway line runs along the southern edge.

Map 1: Ashworth in 1995

• North side of the High Street, from west to east: a row of eight small shops; a primary school with a large playing field; a large field of farmland.
• South side of the High Street, from west to east: a village hall; the railway station with a car park for 20 cars; a goods yard with three warehouses.
• The railway line runs along the southern edge of the map, behind the station and the goods yard.

Map 2: Ashworth at present

• North side, from west to east: the same row of eight shops; the primary school, with a new classroom block built on the western part of the playing field; a housing estate of 60 houses on the former farmland, with a new road, Meadow Road, running north from the High Street through the estate.
• South side, from west to east: a medical centre with a small car park on the site of the village hall; the railway station, with its car park enlarged to hold 80 cars; a supermarket with a large car park on the site of the goods yard.
• The western section of the High Street, in front of the shops, is now closed to traffic (a pedestrian zone).
• A new cycle path runs along the south side of the High Street from the station to the pedestrian zone.

Finding the overview of two maps

Sort every difference into one of five types: new (built where nothing was), replaced (one thing removed and another built on the site), enlarged or reduced, moved or converted, unchanged. Count how many differences fall into each type, and notice where on the map they cluster. The overview then writes itself: the main changes were X, mostly in the Y part of the village, while Z stayed the same.

Answer A, around Band 5.5

The two maps show the village Ashworth in 1995 and now.

In the first map, there is a High Street which go from west to east. On the north side of the High Street there is eight shops in the west, a primary school with a playing field in the middle and a big farmland in the east. On the south side, there is a village hall in the west, a railway station with a car park in the middle and a goods yard with three warehouses in the east. The railway is at the south of the map.

In the second map, the High Street is not same. The west part of High Street is for pedestrian now. On the north side the shops is still there and the school is still there but it have a new classroom. The farmland is now many houses, and there is a new road, Meadow Road. On the south side the village hall is replaced with a medical centre. The station is still there but the car park is more big. In the east the goods yard is a supermarket. There is also a cycle path.

In conclusion, the village has changed a lot and it is more modern now.

Examiner-style commentary on Answer A

Task Achievement. The answer notices most of the changes, which is to its credit, but it presents them as two separate descriptions. The first paragraph is a list of what existed in 1995. The second paragraph does mention the new features, but the reader has to match each one with the first paragraph. There is no real comparison. The overview is the village has changed a lot and it is more modern now, which could be written about any pair of maps and contains no specific information. More modern is also a judgement. The details are mostly accurate (although the farmland is now many houses is imprecise, since the number of houses, 60, is not given). The pedestrian zone and the cycle path are mentioned in a single short sentence each, without saying where. Around Band 5.

Coherence and Cohesion. The two-map structure is logical but it duplicates the content of the map instead of organising the information. Linking is almost non-existent: In the first map, In the second map, In conclusion. The repeated the school is still there and the shops is still there are phrases a candidate uses when they have no other way of saying unchanged. The final paragraph repeats the weak overview. Around Band 5.

Lexical Resource. The language of location is accurate (on the north side, in the west, in the middle) but basic. The language of change is poor: is now many houses, is a supermarket, is replaced with where the usual collocation is replaced by. Pedestrian is used as a noun for a pedestrian area, and big farmland should be a large area of farmland or a large field. Around Band 5.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy. Tense control is poor: the 1995 map is described in the present simple (there is a High Street), when it should be in the past. There are agreement errors (there is eight shops, the shops is still there, a High Street which go, it have) and a faulty comparative (more big). All sentences are simple or use and and but. Most sentences contain an error, although the message is clear. Around Band 5.

Estimate: Task Achievement around 5, Coherence and Cohesion around 5, Lexical Resource around 5, Grammar around 5, which is around Band 5 overall.

Answer B, around Band 6.5

The maps show how the village of Ashworth has changed between 1995 and the present day.

Overall, the village has become larger and more developed, with new housing and services replacing farmland and old buildings, although the High Street and the railway station have stayed in the same places.

In 1995, the High Street ran from west to east, with eight shops on its north side in the west, a primary school with a playing field in the centre and a large field in the east. On the south side were a village hall, the railway station and a goods yard with three warehouses.

Today, most of the changes have taken place on the east side of the village. The field has been replaced by a housing estate of 60 houses, which is reached by a new road, Meadow Road, running north from the High Street. The goods yard has been demolished and a supermarket with a car park has been built on the site. In addition, the village hall has been replaced by a medical centre, and the station car park has been enlarged. In the centre, the school has built a new classroom block on part of its playing field, and the western end of the High Street is now closed for traffic. A cycle path has also been added between the station to the shops.

Examiner-style commentary on Answer B

Task Achievement. There is a proper overview and it is mostly accurate: the village has grown, new housing and services have replaced farmland and older buildings, and the High Street and station have not moved. It is somewhat general, though (larger and more developed), and old buildings is vague, because the answer never says which buildings. The 1995 map is described in a separate paragraph before the changes, which gives the reader the starting point but also takes up words that comparison could have used. Most of the changes have taken place on the east side is only half true, since the village hall and the school are in the west and centre, so the claim is not supported by the rest of the paragraph. The quantities available on the maps (the car park moving from 20 to 80 spaces) are not used. Around Band 6.5.

Coherence and Cohesion. The answer is logically organised in three steps: overview, past, present. Within the last paragraph the changes follow the east to west direction roughly, which is a sensible principle, though it breaks down at the end, where the cycle path comes after the school and the High Street. In addition is a mechanical link between two unrelated changes. Referencing is reasonable (on the site, which is reached by). Around Band 6.5.

Lexical Resource. The language of change is correct and appropriately varied (replaced, demolished, built on the site, enlarged, added), though replaced is used twice in the final paragraph and again in the overview, and has been appears six times, which makes the paragraph flat. Closed for traffic should be closed to traffic, and the school has built attributes the action to the wrong agent. A few items of language are less usual (housing estate, classroom block), which is positive. Around Band 6.5.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy. The answer uses past tense for 1995, present perfect for the changes and present simple for the present state, which is exactly right. The passive is frequent and mostly accurate. The range is narrowed by the use of the same structure (X has been replaced / built / demolished / enlarged / added) in most sentences of the last paragraph. There are two errors, between the station to the shops and the preposition in closed for traffic. Around Band 6.5.

Estimate: Task Achievement around 6.5, Coherence and Cohesion around 6.5, Lexical Resource around 6.5, Grammar around 6.5, which is around Band 6.5 overall.

Answer C, around Band 8

The two maps show how the village of Ashworth has developed since 1995.

Overall, Ashworth has become more built-up, with housing and a supermarket replacing farmland and railway land, while the main road, the railway and the school remain in place.

In 1995, the High Street ran east to west through the village, and along its north side stood a row of eight shops, a primary school and a large field, from west to east. On the opposite side were a village hall, the railway station with a 20-space car park, and a goods yard with three warehouses.

The east side has seen the greatest transformation. The farmland has been covered by a 60-house estate, served by a new road, Meadow Road, which runs north from the High Street, and the goods yard has been cleared to make way for a supermarket with its own car park. The station car park, meanwhile, has expanded fourfold, to 80 spaces.

Elsewhere, the village hall has been replaced by a medical centre, a classroom block has been added to the school on part of its playing field, and the western section of the High Street has been pedestrianised. A new cycle path now links the station with the shops.

Examiner-style commentary on Answer C

Task Achievement. The overview names the type of change (more built-up), says exactly what replaced what (housing and a supermarket replacing farmland and railway land) and says what stayed the same. All the major changes are reported and none is invented. The quantities on the maps are used and compared: 20-space in 1995 against 80 spaces, summarised as fourfold. The answer ranks the changes (the greatest transformation) and groups the rest as smaller under Elsewhere, which is a form of selection. Around Band 8.

Coherence and Cohesion. The answer is organised by area and by importance (the east side first, then elsewhere), which is more informative than a straight description of each map. The 1995 paragraph is kept short and sets up the comparisons that follow. Linking is by structure and reference: the opposite side, the east side, meanwhile, elsewhere, served by. There are no listing connectors. Around Band 8.

Lexical Resource. A good range of language of change, with no repetition of the same verb: covered by, cleared to make way for, replaced by, added to, pedestrianised, links, expanded fourfold. Built-up and transformation are the right level of formality for a report. Paraphrase is skilful (railway land for goods yard, covered by for replaced by). Around Band 8.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy. Tenses are controlled (past simple for 1995 with stood and were, present perfect for completed changes, present simple for the current layout). A good mixture: participle phrases (replacing, served by), a relative clause (which runs north), a purpose infinitive (to make way for), a compound adjective (60-house) and meanwhile to join ideas. The sentences are accurate. Around Band 8.

Estimate: Task Achievement around 8, Coherence and Cohesion around 8, Lexical Resource around 8, Grammar around 8, which is around Band 8 overall.

What separates the three answers

An answer that treats each map in turn is almost never above Band 6. The structure of the answer needs to be built around the changes, not around the maps.

The upgrade

Ten sentences from Answer B, each rewritten to the standard of Answer C, with the reason.

1. B: The maps show how the village of Ashworth has changed between 1995 and the present day. C: The two maps show how the village of Ashworth has developed since 1995. Why: Since 1995 goes naturally with the present perfect, and between… and… does not. The paraphrase developed avoids repeating changed in the overview.

2. B: Overall, the village has become larger and more developed, with new housing and services replacing farmland and old buildings, although the High Street and the railway station have stayed in the same places. C: Overall, Ashworth has become more built-up, with housing and a supermarket replacing farmland and railway land, while the main road, the railway and the school remain in place. Why: Larger and more developed is vague, and old buildings is not on the map. The rewrite names the actual things that were replaced.

3. B: In 1995, the High Street ran from west to east, with eight shops on its north side in the west, a primary school with a playing field in the centre and a large field in the east. C: In 1995, the High Street ran east to west through the village, and along its north side stood a row of eight shops, a primary school and a large field, from west to east. Why: One location phrase, from west to east, replaces three repeated phrases (in the west, in the centre, in the east), and stood is a more suitable verb than a list of with phrases.

4. B: On the south side were a village hall, the railway station and a goods yard with three warehouses. C: On the opposite side were a village hall, the railway station with a 20-space car park, and a goods yard with three warehouses. Why: The opposite side connects the sentence with the previous one, and the added figure is needed for a later comparison.

5. B: Today, most of the changes have taken place on the east side of the village. C: The east side has seen the greatest transformation. Why: The claim most of the changes was not accurate, as the village hall, the school and the cycle path are not in the east. The greatest transformation is a claim about the size of change, which is true, and the sentence is shorter.

6. B: The field has been replaced by a housing estate of 60 houses, which is reached by a new road, Meadow Road, running north from the High Street. C: The farmland has been covered by a 60-house estate, served by a new road, Meadow Road, which runs north from the High Street. Why: Which is reached by is ambiguous (the houses or the estate?). A compound adjective and served by are more compact, and the relative clause now attaches to the road.

7. B: The goods yard has been demolished and a supermarket with a car park has been built on the site. C: The goods yard has been cleared to make way for a supermarket with its own car park. Why: To make way for joins demolition and construction in one passive verb, and its own is more exact than a.

8. B: In addition, the village hall has been replaced by a medical centre, and the station car park has been enlarged. C: The station car park, meanwhile, has expanded fourfold, to 80 spaces. (And, in the last paragraph: Elsewhere, the village hall has been replaced by a medical centre…) Why: The map gives the numbers 20 and 80, and fourfold turns them into a comparison. In addition joined two changes that have nothing in common, so it is removed.

9. B: In the centre, the school has built a new classroom block on part of its playing field, and the western end of the High Street is now closed for traffic. C: …a classroom block has been added to the school on part of its playing field, and the western section of the High Street has been pedestrianised. Why: A school does not build a classroom block, so the passive with added is accurate. Pedestrianised is a one-word, correct alternative to closed for traffic.

10. B: A cycle path has also been added between the station to the shops. C: A new cycle path now links the station with the shops. Why: Between… to is an error. Links is a single verb that makes the sentence shorter, and now shows that this is a present state.

Checklist for two maps

1. Overview. Does it say what kind of change dominates (more housing, less farmland, more facilities), and what stayed the same?
2. Classify. Have you sorted the differences into new, replaced, enlarged or reduced, moved, unchanged, and have you looked at where they cluster?
3. Compare, do not describe twice. Is the first map described briefly and only where it supports the comparison?
4. Organise by change or by area. Does the order of your paragraphs follow the changes (the biggest first, or one area at a time), not the maps?
5. Compass and location language. Have you used north, to the east of, along the southern edge, opposite, adjacent to, on the site of, without repeating in the west / in the east in every sentence?
6. Language of change. Use a variety of verbs: replaced by, converted into, cleared, built on the site of, extended, relocated, enlarged, pedestrianised, remain unchanged.
7. Tenses. Past simple for the earlier map, present perfect for completed changes, present simple for the current layout. For a map of the future, use will and is planned to.
8. Numbers. Use any quantities (spaces, houses, buildings) and compare them.
9. No reasons or opinions. More modern, better, because people needed have no place in a map report.

Practice task

Writing Task 1. The two maps below show Fairview Park in 2005 and today. Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant. Write at least 150 words.

Map 1: Fairview Park in 2005. North is at the top. The park is rectangular. Station Road runs along the southern edge, and the only entrance is a gate in the middle of the south side.

• South, near the entrance: a small café, to the east of the gate; a children’s playground, to the west of the gate.
• Centre: a large lawn with a bandstand in the middle.
• North-west: a small pond.
• East: four tennis courts.
• North side: a fence, with housing beyond it.

Map 2: Fairview Park today.

• South: the café, now with an outdoor terrace; to the west of the gate a car park for 30 cars occupies the site of the old playground.
• Centre: the lawn and the bandstand, unchanged.
• North-west: the pond has been enlarged into a lake with a wooden walkway across it.
• East: two tennis courts and an outdoor gym where the other two courts were.
• North-east: a new, larger children’s playground.
• North side: a new gate and path to the housing.
• Around the edge of the park: a new cycle and running track.

Short plan

• Overview. The centre and the café are unchanged, and the changes are on the edges: more facilities for exercise and families, a second entrance and a car park, at the cost of one playground site and two courts.
• Paragraph 1. The south and the east: the playground has been replaced by a car park, the café has been extended, two tennis courts have been converted into an outdoor gym.
• Paragraph 2. The north and the edge: the pond has become a lake with a walkway, the playground has been relocated to the north-east and made bigger, and there is a second entrance and a track.
• Check. Describe the 2005 layout in only one or two sentences, and use relocated, converted into and on the site of. Avoid beginning more than two sentences with The.

Key points

• Two maps are a comparison task. Describing each map in turn is a Band 5 to 6 structure.
• Sort the differences by type (new, replaced, enlarged, moved, unchanged) and see where they cluster, and the overview follows.
• Organise paragraphs by change or by area, put the biggest change first and keep the earlier map short.
• Use a range of verbs for change, and use any numbers shown on the maps.
• Check tenses: past for the earlier map, present perfect for completed change, present for the current layout. Leave out opinions.

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