Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-10-02

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 chart below shows how frequently people in the USA ate in fast food restaurants between 2003 and 2013. Most of the people used to eat once a week or a month whlie least of the people used to eat everyday.

The people that used to eat in a fast food restaurant everyday was about four percent that decreased by three percent in both 2006 and 2013. The individuals that were having several times a week were sixteen percent in 2003 that increased by twenty percent in 2006 and decreased to almost fifteen percent in 2013. The part of people that were going once a week were thirty-one percent while increasing by thirty-three percent in 2006 but decreasing by twenty-seven percent in 2013.

The citizens that used to eat once or twice a month were thirty percent in 2003 which decreased by twenty-five percent in 2006 and again increasing by thirty-three percent in 2016.

The individuals that used to eat a few times a year were about thirteen percent in 2003 which increased to fifteen percent in both 2006 and 2013. The citizens that were not eating at all were five percent in 2003 and decreased by four percent in both 2006 and 2013.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

The response attempts to address the prompt by summarising the data from the chart, but it only partially covers the requirements. While there is an overview provided in the opening paragraph, it contains inaccuracies, such as stating that 'least of the people used to eat everyday' when daily consumption was low but never the absolute lowest category. Furthermore, the selection of data is erratic and includes several misinterpretations of the figures and trends. For instance, the writer states that percentages 'decreased by three percent' or 'increased by thirty-three percent' when describing the actual reported values or changes incorrectly, such as stating that thirty percent decreased by twenty-five percent in 2006. Because the reporting of data contains frequent inaccuracies and confusion between absolute figures and changes over time, the response fails to provide a fully clear or accurate picture of the main features.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

The essay displays some logical organisation by grouping information into separate paragraphs, but there is no clear overall progression of ideas. Paragraphs tend to list disconnected data points rather than building a coherent narrative of the trends shown in the chart. Cohesive devices are used mechanically and sometimes inaccurately, such as the awkward transition 'while increasing by thirty-three percent' or repetitive sentence openings like 'The people that used to...'. Referencing is also occasionally unclear, making it difficult for the reader to follow the flow of information smoothly. Paragraphing is attempted, but the internal structure of the paragraphs requires better logical linking to achieve a higher level of cohesion.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

The lexical resource is limited but minimally adequate for the task. The vocabulary is repetitive, relying heavily on basic phrases like 'people', 'eat', 'fast food restaurant', and 'percent'. There are noticeable lexical errors in collocation and data reporting, such as phrasing like 'The individuals that were having several times a week' instead of 'eating fast food several times a week'. Other errors include imprecise word choices when describing numerical changes. These inaccuracies sometimes cause confusion for the reader regarding the exact meaning intended, restricting the score to a limited range.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The writer demonstrates a limited range of sentence structures, relying primarily on simple and attempted complex sentences that frequently contain errors. There are frequent issues with prepositions, relative clauses, and verb tenses, such as 'Most of the people used to eat once a week or a month whlie least of the people used to eat everyday' (which also contains a spelling error in 'whlie'). Attempts at complex structures often become clumsy or grammatically faulty, such as 'The citizens that used to eat once or twice a month were thirty percent in 2003 which decreased by twenty-five percent in 2006 and again increasing by thirty-three percent in 2016.' These frequent errors cause some difficulty for the reader and prevent the grammar from reaching a higher band.

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