Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-09-27

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 graph illustrates the proportion of people residing in cities of four Asian countries( Philippines, Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia) between 1970 and 2020. Alongside forcasted population for 2030 and 2040.

Overall, Malaysia had the dominant figure and predicted to remain highest in future. Malaysia's cities population ratio followed a sharp increasing trend, while other countries also followed a remarkable uoward trend.

In detail, in 1970, Malaysia had 30% residents who lived in urban area, which was out raced by Philippines with roughly 32% at that time. However, the population surged sharply to hit a pinnacle of approximately 75% in 2020 and forcasted to reach 80% by 2040. Meanwhile, Philippines followed a trajectory of Malaysia untill 1990, where Philippines became the highest with 50% city residents for the second time after that the population declined to reach a bottom of 40% in 2010. After 2010, the figure rose gradually to about 45% in 2020 and predicted to climb to 55% in 2049.

Turning to the remaining countries,

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

The response covers all four countries and provides an overview, noting trends such as Malaysia's dominance and the upward trajectory across the nations. However, the summary has notable data inaccuracies (e.g., claiming the Philippines reached 50% in 1990 when the graph shows around 48%, and stating it dropped to 40% in 2010 when it was roughly 42.5%). Furthermore, the response trails off abruptly at the end ('Turning to the remaining countries,') and fails to complete the summary. These omissions and inaccuracies place the response at Band 5.5 for Task Achievement.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The essay attempts a logical structure with an introduction, an overview, and initial detailed body paragraphs. Cohesive devices like 'Meanwhile', 'However', and 'In detail' are used to guide the reader. However, paragraphing is severely impacted by the abrupt ending mid-sentence, leaving the structure incomplete and lacking a proper conclusion. Referencing is also occasionally unclear. Because the progression breaks down entirely at the end, the essay achieves a Band 5.5 for Coherence and Cohesion.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, attempting less common items such as 'proportion residing in cities', 'dominant figure', and 'pinnacle'. However, there are several lexical errors and awkward word choices, such as 'forcasted' (misspelled), 'uoward' (misspelled), 'out raced' (outraced), and 'trajectory of Malaysia'. These errors show limited control over collocation and word formation, though communication is generally maintained. This corresponds to a Band 6.0.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, such as relative clauses and comparative forms ('which was out raced by Philippines'). However, grammatical accuracy is inconsistent. There are sentence boundary issues and fragments, such as the second sentence of the introduction ('Alongside forcasted population for 2030 and 2040.') which lacks a main verb, and the unfinished final sentence. Minor prepositions and verb tense shifts also fluctuate. This earns a Band 5.5.

See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.

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