Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-10-06

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 following chart illustrates the ratio of peopel in the USA who ate in fast food restaurants from 2003 to 2013.

Overall, the graph gives us information about the frequency of eating at fast food restaurants among people in the USA between 2003 to 2013 in five different categories like the one who come once a week or twice a month at the restaurants and also like those who never come to the restaurants.

The graph shows us that in 2003, there was 4% people who come to the restaurants every day and 30% to 31% people are those who come to the restaurants once a week or twice a month. In 2006, the ratio almost remains the same but there was a slightly decline in the amount of people who come to the restaurants once a week or twice a month which was 25%. And 4% are those who never come to the restaurants. But at the end of 2013, the ratio of the people who come to the restaurant twice a month again increased to 33%. The ratio of single visits in a week and several times in a week decreased upto 16% and 26%.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.5

The response attempts to address the task by reporting some information from the chart, but it only partially covers the data. While it mentions a few specific figures such as 4%, 30%, 31%, 25%, and 33%, the selection is quite limited and omits crucial overviews or comparisons across the entire period. Furthermore, some of the data reported is inaccurate or confused; for instance, the student states that the ratio of single visits in a week and several times a week decreased up to 16% and 26%, which does not accurately reflect the provided figures for 2013 where 'Once a week' was 28% and 'Several times a week' was 16%. Ideas are underdeveloped, and the response lacks a clear, comprehensive overview of the main trends shown in the bar chart.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

There is some organisation present with an introductory sentence, an overview paragraph, and body details, but the response lacks a clear overall progression. Paragraphing is attempted, but the body paragraphs are disjointed and do not systematically group the data. Cohesive devices are used repetitively and sometimes inaccurately, such as the frequent reliance on 'The graph shows us that' and repetitive transitions like 'And 4% are those' or 'But at the end of'. Referencing is also occasionally unclear, making it difficult to follow the progression of information smoothly from one point to the next.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

The vocabulary used is limited and barely adequate for the task. There are noticeable spelling and word choice errors, such as 'peopel' instead of people, and awkward phrasing like 'the one who come once a week' or 'amount of people' instead of number of people. The writer relies heavily on basic, repetitive terms and attempts to use less common vocabulary result in inaccuracies that occasionally cause confusion for the reader. To improve, the student needs to build a wider range of precise lexical items related to data reporting and eliminate basic spelling slips.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The response exhibits a limited range of sentence structures, relying primarily on simple and repetitive complex patterns. Attempts at complex sentences are frequently faulty, leading to grammatical errors in verb tenses, subject-verb agreement, and articles. Examples include 'there was 4% people who come', where the verb does not agree with the plural subject, and tense inconsistencies when describing past data. Frequent errors persist throughout the text, which can cause some difficulty for the reader and reflect a weak overall control of grammatical mechanics.

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