Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-09-21
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 5.5)
The line chart depicts the information about the proportion of the population in four different Asian coutries from 1970 to 2020, with looking forward for 2030 and 2040.
Overall, Thailand and Indonesia has population around just below 20 percent; however, Philippines and Malasia has just over 30% population in 1970. All countries increased number citizen over the year. By 2040, Malaysia would inclined up to 80%.
In Philippines, at approximately 31% population explored in 1970 and slighly increased in 1980. After that, by 1990, it dramatically enhanced population up to 50%. From 1990 to 2010, it slightly decreased. Followed by, it inclined just over 55%. In Malaysia, it started around 30% in 1970 and increased gradually between 1970 and 1990. After that, it increased rapidly over the year and in 2040, it predicted population up to 80% in 2040.
According to graph, in 1970, Thailand and indonesia has approximately 19% and 13% of the population. Both increased gradually up to 1990. After that, Thailand became constant population from 1990 to 2020 and will increased just over 45%, while Indonesia increased rapidly without any fell in the number of citizen.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The response covers all four countries and provides an overview, but contains inaccuracies and awkward expressions in reporting specific data points. For instance, the writer states that "Thailand and Indonesia has population around just below 20 percent; however, Philippines and Malasia has just over 30%" in 1970, which is reasonably close to the graph, but subsequent data reporting contains flaws, such as claiming Philippines "explored" in 1970 or misrepresenting percentages and trends. The overview captures the general upward trend and starting points, satisfying the basic requirements of Task 1, but the lack of precision and some misread data points limit the score to a Band 5.5.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The response is divided into logical paragraphs, beginning with an introduction, followed by an overview, and separate body paragraphs for the countries. However, the progression within paragraphs is sometimes disjointed due to awkward transitions such as "Followed by, it inclined just over 55%." Cohesive devices are used, but they are often mechanical or inaccurate (e.g., "According to graph... without any fell in the number of citizen"). Paragraphing is attempted, but overall cohesion is faulty at times, placing this firmly in the Band 5.5 range.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.0
The vocabulary is limited and repetitious, featuring frequent word-choice and collocation errors. Examples include "coutries" (spelling), "increased number citizen", "dramatically enhanced population", "population explored", and "without any fell". The student attempts less common vocabulary like "dramatically enhanced" and "inclined", but these are misused. While the vocabulary is adequate to convey the general topic of urban population percentages, the numerous errors place it at a Band 5.0.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The response exhibits a very limited range of grammatical structures, relying mostly on simple sentences with frequent structural errors. There are numerous subject-verb agreement errors, such as "Thailand and Indonesia has" and "Philippines and Malasia has". Tense usage is also mixed inconsistently between past references and future predictions (e.g., "Malaysia would inclined up to 80%", "will increased just over 45%"). These frequent errors cause difficulty for the reader and reflect a Band 5.0 level.
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