Band 7.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 7.5 · Recent IELTS Exams (Canada & India) · 2026-08-16
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 7.5)
The two pie charts compare how working adults in a single country allocated their daily time across six different activities in 1958 and 2008.
Overall, working constituted the largest share of time in both years, experiencing a noticeable increase over the 50-year period. Conversely, sleeping and social leisure activities saw substantial declines, while time spent traveling, relaxing at home, and playing sports grew.
In 1958, working accounted for a third of the day (33%), making it the second most dominant category behind sleeping, which occupied 32%. Going out with friends or family took up 19%, while relaxing at home constituted a modest 8%. Commuting to work was the least time-consuming activity, taking up just 2% of the day.
By 2008, work-related time expanded significantly to become the single largest category at 42%, whereas sleep shrank by seven percentage points to 25%. Time dedicated to going out plummeted from 19% to 6%. In contrast, time spent relaxing at home rose to 13%, and commuting more than tripled to 7%. Additionally, playing sports emerged as a new category in 2008, accounting for 7% of the daily routine.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 7.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 7.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 7.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 7.5 |
| Overall | 7.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.5
The response effectively addresses all requirements of the task. You have provided a clear overview of the main trends and successfully selected and reported key features from both years. The comparison between 1958 and 2008 is well-integrated, and the data is used accurately to support your points, such as the shift in work-related time and the decline in social leisure. The inclusion of the new category in 2008 demonstrates a thorough understanding of the data. The response is well-structured and covers all parts of the prompt without any omissions.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.5
The response is logically organized, with a clear introduction, an overview paragraph, and two body paragraphs that group information effectively. The progression of ideas is smooth, and you have used a variety of cohesive devices such as 'Conversely', 'In contrast', and 'Additionally' to link sentences and paragraphs. The paragraphing is appropriate, and the information flows logically from the general overview to specific data points. The use of referencing is clear, ensuring the reader can easily follow the comparison between the two time periods.
Lexical Resource — Band 7.5
You have demonstrated a good range of vocabulary appropriate for an academic report. Phrases such as 'allocated their daily time', 'noticeable increase', 'substantial declines', and 'plummeted' show a strong command of language. The vocabulary is precise and used accurately to describe the trends in the pie charts. There is a good balance of general and specific terminology, and the word choices are natural and sophisticated. You have avoided repetition and maintained a formal tone throughout the response.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 7.5
The response displays a wide range of grammatical structures with a high level of accuracy. You have successfully used complex sentences, such as 'By 2008, work-related time expanded significantly to become the single largest category at 42%, whereas sleep shrank by seven percentage points to 25%.' Punctuation is used correctly, and there are no significant errors that impede communication. The majority of your sentences are error-free, and the control over tense and subject-verb agreement is consistent throughout the text.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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