Band 4.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 4.5 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-11-06

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The graph below gives information about the percentage of the population in four Asian countries living in cities from 1970 to 2020, with predictions for 2030 and 2040. Summarize the information by selecting and reporting the main features and make comparisons where relevant.

 

Student answer (Band 4.5)

The line graph illustrates the data in four asian countries ciitzens living in urban area between 1970 and 2010, and predicted periods from 2030 to 2040.

Overall, Malaysian cities living population are higher that other three countries, and future estimated that all country are face urbanization.

In 1970 Philippines and Malaysia urban housholder started same portion around 30%, after 20 years periods of time philippines cross the malaysia around 50%. However, last of the periods philippino in living cities are dramatically decreased and malaysia in pick 35% and 70% respectively, in future next 3 decades urbanization will be sharp 50% and 90%.

On the other figures for Thailand and Indonesia in 1970 both are lowes then other, and in 2010 they will face city lover at

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response4.0
Coherence and Cohesion4.5
Lexical Resource5.0
Grammatical Range and Accuracy5.0
Overall4.5

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.0

You identify the general subject and offer an overview that Malaysia is highest and urbanisation is expected to continue. However, the response covers the graph only minimally and several key details are inaccurate: the Philippines does not overtake Malaysia around 1990, and Malaysia reaches about 76% in 2020, not 70%; the later estimate is about 84%, not 90%. The claim that the Philippines falls dramatically also overstates a modest decline before its recovery. The final sentence stops before reporting the Thailand and Indonesia trends, leaving two series largely unaddressed. The response is also 24 words below the required minimum. To improve, complete the comparison of all four countries and select accurate figures to support a clear overview.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.5

There is a basic attempt to organise the response, beginning with an introduction and overview before moving to comparisons. Phrases such as “Overall” and “On the other figures” signal a change of focus, but the progression is difficult to follow because the comparisons are compressed into long, unclear sentences. The paragraph about the Philippines and Malaysia combines several periods without clearly distinguishing past data from forecasts. Most importantly, the final sentence ends abruptly at “city lover at,” so the discussion of Thailand and Indonesia is incomplete. Use separate paragraphs for the overview and the main comparisons, and connect each period and country explicitly. This would give the reader a clearer route through the information.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

The response uses some relevant topic vocabulary, including “line graph,” “urbanization,” “predicted,” and “portion,” so the subject is generally recognisable. However, the range is limited and several word choices or collocations are inaccurate or unclear, such as “cities living population,” “urban housholder,” “in pick,” and “city lover.” Spelling and word-form errors, including “asian,” “philippines,” and “lowes,” also reduce precision. These problems sometimes make it difficult to understand exactly what is being compared. Build a more reliable set of terms for describing proportions and trends, such as “urban population,” “share,” “peak,” “decline,” and “rise,” and check spelling and collocations before finishing.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt some longer sentences and use basic time references, but the range of sentence structures is limited and errors are frequent enough to make parts difficult to interpret. For example, “Malaysian cities living population are higher that other three countries” has problems with sentence structure, agreement, and comparison; “all country are face urbanization” also has faulty agreement and verb construction. The sentence beginning “In 1970 Philippines and Malaysia…” is difficult to follow because its clauses are not clearly formed, and the final sentence is incomplete. Practise building accurate simple sentences first, then combine them with controlled clauses. Pay particular attention to subject–verb agreement, articles, verb forms, and complete sentence boundaries.

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