Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-10-21

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 5.5)

The bar chart illustrates how frequently USA citizens ate in fast food restaurants from 2003 to 2013.

"Overall, the highest proportion was once a week or once or twice a month throughout the period while the smallest shares was every day or never.

Between 2003, 2006 and 2013 the lowest fraction was every day at 4%, 3% and 3% respectively while never was slightly higher than every day around 5%, 4% and 4%. The third category was a few times a year which was gradually higher than never at 13%, 15% and 15% whereas the next category was several times a week it was largest than a few times a year, at 17%, 20% and 16%.

The largest segment was once a week at 31%, 33% and 28% respectively, followed by once or twice a month approximately 30%, 25% and 33% in 2003, 2006 and 2013.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the main categories and give figures for all three years, and your overview correctly notes that weekly and monthly visits were the most common while daily visits and never eating out were among the least common. However, the overview is imprecise: the leading category changes from once a week in 2003 and 2006 to once or twice a month in 2013. Some comparisons also need clearer accuracy; for example, “never” is about 4.5%, 3.5% and 3.5%, rather than 5%, 4% and 4%, though these are close approximations. The response is four words below the required minimum. Add a concise, accurate comparison of the main shift and ensure the report meets the task length.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, an overview and two paragraphs reporting details. The figures are generally grouped by frequency, and phrases such as “whereas” and “followed by” help signal comparisons. However, the progression is not always easy to follow because the second paragraph moves through categories using “the third category” and “the next category” rather than naming them directly. The opening overview is also placed in quotation marks without a clear reason, and the final paragraph largely repeats the ranking already described. Improve cohesion by grouping the low-frequency categories together, then comparing the two leading categories, using explicit category names and a clearer overview of how the leader changes.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use a suitable range of task vocabulary, including “proportion,” “fraction,” “segment,” “respectively” and “approximately,” and the meaning is generally clear. There is some variation in how you describe percentages, which helps avoid excessive repetition. However, several choices are inaccurate or unnatural for chart reporting: “the smallest shares was” has a word-form problem, “largest than” is not the correct comparative expression, and “the third category” is vague when the category could be named. Prefer precise, natural collocations such as “the lowest proportions,” “higher than,” and “the share who ate out a few times a year.” This would make the comparisons more fluent and exact.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mix of simple statements and longer comparative sentences, and most of the data remains understandable. However, some grammatical errors are noticeable. In “the smallest shares was,” the plural subject does not agree with “was”; “Between 2003, 2006 and 2013” is an incomplete or awkward time construction; and “the next category was several times a week it was largest…” joins clauses without suitable punctuation or a connector. The sentence beginning “The third category was…” also becomes difficult to control as several comparisons are packed together. Use complete, clearly separated sentences, check subject–verb agreement, and vary sentence structures while keeping each comparison manageable.

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