Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Recent IELTS Exams (Canada & India) · 2026-08-19

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 given pie charts illustrate the percentage of working adults of any country spent their time i 1958 and 2008.

overall, the percentage of sectors working ,relax at home and travelling to work is increased and sectors sleeping and going with family decreased. On the other side the sport sector remain same .

The pie graph shows that the working ratio in 1958 is 33% which increases to 42 % in the2008 . The pie graph illustrates that the ratio of relaxing at home adults is 8%in 1958 and becomes 13% in 2008 by increasing . The charts shows that the sector travelling to work is 2%in 1958 which increases to 7 % in 2008 . On the other hand the sport ratio remain the same in both years . The sector going with family is 19 % in 1958 which decreases to 6 % in 2000 . The sleeping sector is 32 % in1958 which becomes 25 % by decreasing.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response covers the main features of the pie charts and makes relevant comparisons between 1958 and 2008. However, the overview is somewhat inaccurate; for instance, it claims the 'sport' sector remained the same, which is a misinterpretation of the data provided in the prompt. Additionally, the analysis is largely a list of figures rather than a synthesized report. While all categories are mentioned, the lack of a clear, accurate summary of trends prevents a higher score. The inclusion of a typo in the year (2000 instead of 2008) also impacts the accuracy of the data reporting.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organized into paragraphs, but the progression of ideas is mechanical. The use of cohesive devices is limited and repetitive (e.g., 'The pie graph shows', 'The charts shows'). Paragraphing is present, but the transition between the overview and the body paragraphs is abrupt. The referencing is sometimes unclear, and the overall flow is hindered by the repetitive sentence structures used to present the data. To improve, you should vary your linking words and group related information more logically rather than listing each category one by one.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

The vocabulary is basic and repetitive, relying heavily on words like 'sector', 'ratio', and 'increases'. There are several instances of awkward phrasing, such as 'working adults of any country spent their time i 1958' and 'going with family'. The range of vocabulary is insufficient to demonstrate flexibility or precision. Spelling errors, such as 'relax' instead of 'relaxing' and 'i' instead of 'in', are noticeable. To reach a higher band, you need to use a wider range of synonyms and more precise collocations to describe trends and proportions.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The response relies on simple sentence structures. There are frequent grammatical errors, including subject-verb agreement issues (e.g., 'the charts shows', 'the sport sector remain same') and incorrect verb tenses. Punctuation is also inconsistent, with missing spaces after commas and periods. While the meaning is generally clear, the high frequency of basic grammatical errors limits the score. You should focus on mastering subject-verb agreement and ensuring consistent tense usage when describing past data.

See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.

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