Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-09-25
IELTS Writing Task 1 question
The chart below shows how frequently people in the USA ate in fast food restaurants between 2003 and 2013.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.
Student answer (Band 5.0)
The given bar graph depicts the percentage of people who ate in junk meal restaurants in the USA in the year of 2003, 2006, 2013.
Overall, is clear that the majority of people ate fast food once in a week, while less number of people had meal once or twice a month in a restaurant in 2006. The people in the USA who went to restaurant every day and never visited hotels were in minority.
The frequency of people who ate at fast food restaurants every day was less than 5%, although the residents who never ate at fast food restaurants were only 5% in 2003. Additionally, the average were less than 5% in 2006 and 2013. Furthermore, the residents in the USA who only ate a few times a year was 13% in 2003. The proportion of people were 15% in 2006 and 2013. Residents who had their meal several times a week in a restaurant was 17% in
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0
The student attempts to address the task by reporting several features from the bar chart regarding the frequency of eating at fast food restaurants in the USA between 2003 and 2013. However, there are noticeable issues with data accuracy and completeness. For instance, the overview contains confusing phrasing ("less number of people had meal once or twice a month... in 2006") and misinterprets the chart's general trends. Furthermore, the response is cut off abruptly mid-sentence at the end ("Residents who had their meal several times a week in a restaurant was 17% in"), failing to present a fully developed report. While some key categories like 'every day', 'a few times a year', and 'several times a week' are mentioned, the lack of completion and minor inaccuracies place this response at Band 5.0.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0
The response exhibits some basic organization, beginning with an introduction and attempting an overview. However, the overall progression is disrupted by mechanical and faulty cohesive devices, such as the awkward transition "Overall, is clear that..." and repetitive sentence starters. Paragraphing is underdeveloped, as the text breaks down into a series of disconnected sentences and an incomplete concluding thought. Referencing is occasionally unclear, which impedes smooth reading and logical flow. Because the organizational structure is basic and cohesion is frequently faulty, this meets the criteria for Band 5.0.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.0
The vocabulary used is generally adequate for conveying basic information, but it is limited and contains unnatural or imprecise word choices. For example, the student refers to fast food restaurants as "junk meal restaurants" and uses the word "hotels" to mean restaurants, which is an unnatural collocation in English. Other phrases like "less number of people" are grammatically imprecise. While there is an attempt to use less common vocabulary, the errors in word choice and lexical control restrict the score to Band 5.0.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0
The student demonstrates a mix of simple sentence forms and attempts at complex structures, such as relative clauses ("the percentage of people who ate..."). However, attempts at complex sentences frequently contain grammatical errors or awkward phrasing, such as subject-verb agreement issues ("the average were less than 5%", "the residents... was 13%"). Punctuation and article usage also show frequent inaccuracies. Because grammatical errors occur regularly and can cause occasional difficulty for the reader, this performance aligns with Band 5.0.
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