Band 4.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 4.5 · 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 4.5)
The bar chart illustrates the frequency of individuals who ate food from different food points in the USA. Overall,outer vetical line shows the percentage of majority population.Additionally,the horizontal line domonstrates the various varieties of time.The whole estimation was done between 2003 and 2013. The black,grey and shaded lines show the years 2003,2006,2013 correspondingly.The people who went to the food restaurants every day, were negligible.Majority of people has been going to restaurants several times a week in 2006.There was a slight difference between the years 2003 and 2006,when individuals went to food points.In addition,by the year 2006 a substantial amount of people went to ate food once a week and the ratios was up to 35%. In the half quarter of 20th century,a wide range of population had been going to several restaurants.The line stayed constant for those individuals,who went to restaurants a few times a year which were 15%.Ultimately,the people who never went to restaurants,were less than 5% and above 0%.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 4.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 4.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 4.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.5
The response attempts to address the task by mentioning some elements of the bar chart, but it only partially covers the information and misinterprets the visual data in several places. For instance, the writer states that people who went to restaurants every day were negligible, which is partially true, but descriptions of trends and key comparisons are confused and lack a clear overview. The text struggles to accurately report the main features, such as the peak at 'once a week' or the shifts across the three years (2003, 2006, and 2013). Furthermore, the summary lacks a well-developed global picture, presenting isolated and sometimes inaccurate details rather than a coherent selection of data points. To improve, the writer must ensure that information is read correctly from the chart and supported by a clear introductory overview that highlights the most prominent trends and comparisons.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.0
The text suffers from a lack of clear overall progression and logical organisation. The response is written as a single block of text rather than being structured into logical paragraphs (such as an introduction, an overview, and body paragraphs), which makes the overall arrangement difficult to follow. Cohesive devices are used minimally and rather mechanically, such as 'Additionally', 'In addition', and 'Ultimately', and referencing is often unclear or confusing. For example, sentences jump abruptly from axis descriptions to specific year data without smooth transitions. To achieve a higher band, the writer needs to group related information into distinct paragraphs and establish a clear logical flow that guides the reader seamlessly through the main features and comparisons of the chart.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.0
The vocabulary used is limited and basic, restricting the writer's ability to discuss the visual data with precision. While there is an attempt to use less common vocabulary items, such as 'substantial', 'negligible', and 'proportion' (misspelled as 'ratios' or used awkwardly as 'ratios was up to 35%'), noticeable inaccuracies in word choice and collocation impede communication. For example, phrases like 'food points' and 'different food points' are unnatural when referring to fast food restaurants. There are also descriptive lexical awkwardnesses, such as 'outer vertical line' and 'horizontal line domonstrates'. To improve lexical resource, the writer should build a wider range of precise vocabulary specifically suited for describing statistical data and trends, while paying closer attention to standard collocations and word forms.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0
The grammatical structures used are somewhat limited, relying heavily on simple sentences alongside poorly constructed complex attempts. There are frequent grammatical errors throughout the response, particularly concerning prepositions, articles, and clause structures. Examples include 'Majority of people has been going' (missing articles and incorrect tense consistency), 'went to ate food' (incorrect infinitive form after a preposition), and punctuation issues around commas and spacing. These frequent errors cause some difficulty for the reader and reveal a lack of firm control over basic and complex sentence forms. To reach a higher level, the writer must work on eliminating frequent basic errors, ensuring correct verb complementation, and using a wider, more accurate variety of complex grammatical structures.
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