Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Recent IELTS Exams (Canada & India) · 2026-08-13
IELTS Writing Task 1 question
The pie charts below show how working adults in a particular country spent their time in 1958 and 2008.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.
* Note: these aren’t the original diagrams given in the test, they were recreated for the purpose of demonstration.
Student answer (Band 5.5)
The pie charts illustrate the modification in percentage of the day used by working adults in a country between 1958 and 2008.
Overall , It can be noticed from the graph that the percentage of working field achieved greater proportion spent by adults. However, the activity such as travelling to work gained less percentage in the first year , which further increased in the next year
Firstly, there is 6 major activities performed by working adults in the year 1958 and 2008. Activity like working gained highest percentage in both year about 33 percent and 42 percent respectively . Sleeping activity is just slight less than working . the percentage of sleeping in the year 1958 is 32 which further declined to 25. Adults spent time on playing sports was 7 percent in both years respectively .
Secondaly , travelling to work has 2 percent in 1958 which further raised to 7 percent in 2008 . Furthermore , adults relax at home much less in 1958 but in 2008 teenagers relax about 13 percent . In 1958 , adults spent time to going out with their family and friends.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The response identifies the main features of the charts, such as the increase in working hours and the decline in sleeping time. However, the analysis is somewhat superficial and lacks a clear, cohesive overview. The data reporting is occasionally inaccurate or confusing, such as the mention of 'teenagers' relaxing, which is not supported by the prompt (which specifies 'working adults'). Furthermore, the final sentence is incomplete and fails to provide a comparison for the 'going out' category. To improve, ensure all data points are accurately transcribed and that the overview clearly synthesizes the most significant trends rather than just listing individual figures.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The essay is organized into paragraphs, but the logical flow is hindered by awkward transitions and repetitive phrasing. While cohesive devices like 'Firstly', 'Secondaly' (spelling error), and 'Furthermore' are used, they are often applied mechanically. The referencing is sometimes unclear, and the progression of ideas between sentences is occasionally disjointed. The paragraphing is present but does not effectively group related information, leading to a fragmented reading experience. Improving the use of linking words and ensuring that each paragraph has a clear thematic focus would significantly enhance the coherence of the response.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.0
The range of vocabulary is limited and repetitive, relying heavily on basic terms like 'gained', 'percentage', and 'activity'. There are several instances of awkward word choice and collocation errors, such as 'modification in percentage' instead of 'change in the proportion' and 'working field' instead of 'working'. The attempt to use more sophisticated vocabulary is limited, and some errors, such as the misuse of 'respectively' when comparing only two items, indicate a lack of precision. Expanding your vocabulary to include more varied verbs and nouns related to data description would help improve this score.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The response contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors throughout. Issues include subject-verb agreement ('there is 6 major activities'), incorrect article usage, and punctuation errors (e.g., spaces before commas). Tense usage is inconsistent, particularly when describing past data. While the meaning is generally clear, these errors are frequent and occasionally distract the reader. To reach a higher band, focus on correcting basic subject-verb agreement and ensuring consistent tense usage when describing historical data.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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