Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-09-28

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 graph illustrates the proportion of the population from 1970 to 2020 living in cities in four Asian countries including Philippines, Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia, with predictions for 2030 and 2040.

Overall, Malaysia shows steady growth and remain at the top while Indonesia after staying at low will cross other two countries as predicted.

In 1970, Malaysia's 30% population was living in cities, despite a dip in 1990 its population reached at the highest point in 2020 accounted for almost 75%. Whereas, predicition for 2040 shows that its urban population might touch down to 90%.

In contrast, Philipines urban population was at little over 30% in 1970, before a fluctuation its population reached at the highest level of 50% in 1990 and fell gradually around 40% in 2010.

The recovery is predicted and it might reached above 50% in 2040.

Furthermore, Thailand's urban population was below 20% at the start of the period and show a steady upward trend, its prediction for 2040 says its urban population will be around at 50%.

Indonesia's cities population was at just over 10% in 1970 and reached at significant highest level of 50% in 2020 and it is also predicited that in 2040 its urban population will reached at 60%.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

The student successfully addresses all parts of the prompt by reporting the main features, trends, and future predictions for the four countries over the given time frame. An overview is attempted in the second paragraph, capturing Malaysia's leading position and Indonesia's overtaking trend. However, some data points are slightly inaccurate compared to the visual source. For example, Malaysia's urban population reached approximately 76% in 2020 rather than 'almost 75%', and the prediction for Malaysia in 2040 is around 83.5%, not 90%. Additionally, the Philippines experienced a peak in 1990 at roughly 48%, whereas the student states it reached 50%. Despite these minor data inaccuracies, the response provides a generally clear summary with relevant comparisons, satisfying the requirements for Band 6.0.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response is organized into logical paragraphs, starting with an introduction, followed by an overview, and separate body paragraphs for individual countries. Cohesive devices such as 'Overall', 'In contrast', and 'Furthermore' are used to structure the text, though some transitions feel a bit mechanical. Paragraphing is generally appropriate, but the division between paragraphs is sometimes fragmented, particularly with single-sentence paragraphs like 'The recovery is predicted and it might reached above 50% in 2040.' Referencing is mostly clear, but the overall progression could be smoother. These features place the response securely at Band 6.0.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The student demonstrates an adequate vocabulary for the task, attempting less common items such as 'proportion', 'steady growth', 'fluctuation', and 'upward trend'. However, there are notable word choice and collocation inaccuracies throughout the text, such as 'remain at the top' instead of 'remains', 'staying at low' instead of 'remaining low', and 'touch down to' instead of 'reach'. Spelling is generally correct, but phrasing can be awkward. Because the vocabulary is sufficient to convey the main message despite some noticeable errors, a Band 6.0 is appropriate.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The writer uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, incorporating subordinate clauses like 'despite a dip in 1990' and 'while Indonesia after staying at low will cross other two countries'. However, grammatical errors occur frequently, particularly with verb tenses, subject-verb agreement, and passive/active voice usage. Examples include 'Malaysia shows steady growth and remain', 'its population reached at the highest point', 'predicition for 2040 shows', 'it might reached', and 'it is also predicited that... its urban population will reached'. These errors occasionally cause the reader hesitation, aligning the grammar with the Band 5.5 descriptor.

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

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