Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Recent IELTS Exams (Canada & India) · 2026-08-21
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 chart illustrates adults having a job participating in different activities during a day with a comparison between the year 1958 and 2008 in a particular country.
Overall, work related activities show an upward trend in the percentage in 2008 in contrast to 1958. Consequently, activities like spending time with friends/family or sleeping time are reduced to considerable amount in 2008 in contrast with the year 1958.
Working class adults depict an increase of 9% and 5% in working and traveling to work activities respectively in the year 2008. Furthermore, relaxing at home is the only leisure time activity that show an increase with 5% in comparison with 1958.
Adults who work show no change in the activity playing sport with 7% in both years. Working class used to spend more time with friends or family in 1958 with 19% but a decline of 12% was seen in 2008 because of increase in work related activities.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The response provides a clear overview and identifies key trends, such as the increase in work-related activities and the decrease in leisure time. However, the report is somewhat incomplete as it fails to mention all categories shown in the charts (e.g., 'sleeping' is mentioned in the overview but not detailed in the body, and 'other' is ignored). While the main features are highlighted, the data reporting is occasionally imprecise, such as stating that 'relaxing at home' is the only leisure activity to increase without confirming if other minor categories were excluded. To reach a higher band, ensure all categories are accounted for and data points are consistently accurate.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0
The essay is logically organized into an introduction, an overview, and two body paragraphs. The progression of ideas is generally clear, moving from general trends to specific data comparisons. Cohesive devices such as 'Furthermore', 'Consequently', and 'in contrast to' are used to link sentences. However, the use of some cohesive devices is slightly mechanical, and the referencing could be smoother. Paragraphing is appropriate, and the overall structure supports the reader's understanding of the information presented.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The vocabulary is adequate for the task, allowing the writer to describe trends and comparisons effectively. Phrases like 'upward trend', 'considerable amount', and 'depict an increase' are used correctly. However, there is some repetition of basic structures and a lack of more sophisticated or varied vocabulary. Some word choices, such as 'working class adults' to refer to 'working adults', are slightly imprecise in this context. The range is sufficient to convey meaning, but more precise terminology would enhance the quality of the report.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The response uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are several grammatical errors, such as 'adults having a job participating in' (awkward phrasing) and 'show an increase with 5%' (preposition error). Subject-verb agreement is occasionally inconsistent, for example, 'relaxing at home is the only leisure time activity that show' (should be 'shows'). Despite these errors, the grammar does not impede communication, and the writer demonstrates a reasonable control over basic sentence construction.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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