Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-11-03

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 5.0)

The graph illustrates the percentage of resident living in cities in four different asian countries between 1970 and 2020 along with prediction of residents in future years.

Overall, people of malaysia and philippines have intially equal percentage but later a upward trend can seen in malaysians. while thailand and indonesia have small percentage in 1970 which futher increase equally upto 2000 an will be increased in 2040 with 40-60 percent.

intially, in 1970 philippines and malaysia occupied by around 30% of peoples. A slight fluctuation can seen upto 1990 with percentage of approximately 50. then malaysians citizens gradually increased with around 70% in 2020 and will increased by 80% upto 2040. While malaysians are increased by around 40% upto 2020 and will be around 55% in future.

Thailand and Indonesia have arond 15% residents in 1970, are increased around 30% in 2000. This will futher increased

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

You identify the four countries and include a broad overview, noting Malaysia’s rise and the lower starting figures for Thailand and Indonesia. However, the overview is unclear and partly inaccurate: the countries do not begin at equal percentages, and Thailand and Indonesia do not increase equally through 2000. Several key comparisons are missing, especially Indonesia’s strong growth and its overtaking of the Philippines by 2020. The final sentence is unfinished, so the later trend for Thailand and Indonesia is not reported. Some figures are also confused: the Philippines is described as reaching around 50% in 1990, while Malaysia’s 2020 figure is given as around 70% rather than about 76%. The response is 146 words, below the required 150.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

The response has an introduction, an overview and two body paragraphs, so there is some basic organisation. However, progression is difficult to follow because the overview combines several trends imprecisely, and the final paragraph stops mid-idea: “This will futher increased”. Connections between comparisons are also unclear. For example, “While malaysians are increased by around 40% upto 2020” does not make clear which country or period is being compared. Linking words such as “while” and “then” are attempted, but are sometimes used inaccurately or without a clear relationship between the clauses. Organise the body by grouping the two higher urbanisation series and the two lower-starting series, and complete each comparison before moving on.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use some relevant task vocabulary, including “percentage”, “upward trend”, “fluctuation” and “gradually increased”, which helps communicate the topic. However, the range is limited and several word choices or collocations are inaccurate, sometimes making the meaning difficult to interpret. “Percentage of resident” and “prediction of residents” do not express the share of the population living in cities; “urban population” or “proportion of people living in cities” would be clearer. “Occupied by” is also unsuitable for describing a percentage, and “increased equally” is imprecise. Spelling errors such as “intially”, “futher” and “arond”, along with inconsistent capitalisation of country names, are noticeable. Aim for precise trend language and check spelling and word forms.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The response attempts some complex sentences and uses time references, but the range is limited and errors occur frequently, sometimes obscuring relationships between ideas. Examples include “a upward trend can seen”, which lacks an auxiliary verb, and “will be increased”, where the passive form is not appropriate for describing a figure that rises. Agreement and sentence construction are also problematic in “people of malaysia and philippines have intially equal percentage” and “Thailand and Indonesia have arond 15% residents”. Punctuation and capitalisation are inconsistent, and the final sentence is incomplete. Practise forming clear comparisons with accurate subjects and verbs, for example, “Malaysia’s figure rose to about 76% by 2020 and is projected to reach roughly 84% in 2040.”

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