Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-10-12

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The bar chart below shows the percentage of Australian men and women in different age groups who did regular physical activity in 2010.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

Student answer (Band 6.5)

The bar chart gives information about the proportions of Australian males and females in six age groups who exercised regularly in 2010.

Overall, in 2010, the figures for females who did regular physical activity were generally higher than men. However, the biggest proportion of men who did regular workouts were from the youngest age group, women aged 45 to 54 exercised more than those in the other age groups.

Men aged 15 to 24 accounted for the highest percentage of regular exercise, at 52.8% compared with a percentage of 47.7% of men. On the other hand, the biggest proportion of women being regularly active was among those aged between 45 and 54, at 53.3%, compared with 43.1% of men. In the 65-and-over age group, males and females were almost equally active at 47.1% and 46.7% respectively.

Regarding the other 3 age groups; 25 to 34, 35 to 44, and 55 to 64, women’s figures were generally bigger than men. At 48.9%, 52.5%, and 53% for women in order. Meanwhile, for men, the percentages were 42.2%, 39.55, and 45.1% respectively.

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response6.5
Coherence and Cohesion6.5
Lexical Resource6.5
Grammatical Range and Accuracy6.5
Overall6.5

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

The response identifies the main pattern that women were more active in most age groups and correctly highlights the male peak among 15–24-year-olds and the female peak among 45–54-year-olds. It also selects useful comparisons across the age groups. However, one key comparison is reversed: for the 65-and-over group, the chart shows men at 46.7% and women at 47.1%, not the other way around. The overview could also be more precise by noting that men’s activity fell to a low among 35–44-year-olds before rising, while women’s rate peaked in middle age and then declined. These omissions and the misreported figures limit the completeness and precision of the summary.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The response has a clear overall structure: an introduction, an overview, and two paragraphs presenting comparisons and figures. The progression from the main trends to age-specific details is easy to follow, and linking phrases such as “Overall,” “On the other hand,” and “Meanwhile” help signal relationships. Some cohesion is less controlled, however. The final paragraph begins with a semicolon after “Regarding the other 3 age groups,” and the following fragment, “At 48.9%, 52.5%, and 53% for women in order,” is not integrated into a complete sentence. The repeated use of comparison markers also makes parts feel list-like. Grouping the figures into complete, parallel sentences would make the progression smoother and more cohesive.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.5

There is an adequate range of task-related vocabulary, including “proportions,” “accounted for,” “regularly active,” and “age group.” The writer also varies references to physical activity rather than relying on one expression throughout. Some choices are imprecise or less natural for an academic chart summary: “regular workouts” sounds informal, “the biggest proportion” is repeated, and “women’s figures were generally bigger” is less suitable than language describing percentages. “In order” is also an awkward way to introduce a sequence of values. These choices do not prevent understanding, but more precise collocations and consistent use of terms such as “percentage,” “rate,” and “higher” would improve control and formality.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.5

The response uses a mix of simple and more complex forms, including the contrast in “However, the biggest proportion…” and the comparison “at 53.3%, compared with 43.1% of men.” Most sentences communicate the intended meaning, but some grammatical and punctuation issues remain. The sentence beginning “At 48.9%, 52.5%, and 53% for women in order” is a fragment, and the semicolon after “age groups” does not correctly connect the following construction. In “compared with a percentage of 47.7% of men,” the comparison structure is also unclear. The figures are generally presented in the past tense appropriately; revising sentence boundaries and making comparisons grammatically parallel would strengthen accuracy.

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