Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Recent IELTS Exams (Canada & India) · 2026-08-25
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 two pie charts illustrates the proportion of individuals use their leisure time in six different activities after job in the year 1958 to 2008.
Overall, the percentage of people spending their time in working and sleeping had remained significantly same with a slight difference. Whereas other activities recorded many fluctuations in the last 5 decades.
To commence with, people invest their majority of time in working which was almost 2 quarters than the total time approximately 45% over the last 50 years. Moreover, other activities such as commuting to job and enjoying at home had shown a noticeable increase which rise up to 5% than the previous years.
Furthermore, exploring out with family and friends and sleeping at home had showed dramatic decreased which fell roughly 10% in the 5 decades. Nonetheless, the one activity which is playing sports remained considerably constant throughout the year 2008 which is 7%.
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 covers the main features of the pie charts, but the analysis is somewhat inaccurate and lacks precision. For example, stating that working and sleeping remained 'significantly same' is vague, and the claim that working was 'almost 2 quarters' (50%) is mathematically imprecise given the data. Furthermore, the description of trends is inconsistent; the report mentions 'dramatic decreased' for sleeping, which is not clearly supported by the data provided. To improve, ensure that figures are reported accurately and that comparisons are clearly linked to the specific years mentioned. The overview is present but lacks a clear summary of the most significant shifts.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0
The essay is organised into paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the structure. However, the use of cohesive devices is sometimes mechanical or misused. For instance, 'To commence with' is an unusual choice for a data report, and the transition 'Nonetheless' is used to introduce a point that does not contrast with the previous sentence. Referencing is occasionally unclear, such as in the phrase 'throughout the year 2008 which is 7%', which does not logically connect to the preceding information. Improving the variety and accuracy of linking words will help the flow of ideas.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task but lacks precision and contains several errors in collocation and word choice. Phrases like 'proportion of individuals use their leisure time' and 'enjoying at home' are unnatural. There are also grammatical errors in word forms, such as 'dramatic decreased' instead of 'dramatic decrease' and 'which rise up to' instead of 'which rose by'. To reach a higher band, focus on using more precise academic vocabulary to describe trends, such as 'fluctuated', 'remained stable', or 'experienced a marginal increase'.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The response contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors that occasionally impede clarity. Examples include subject-verb agreement issues ('The given two pie charts illustrates') and tense inconsistencies ('had remained', 'had showed'). Additionally, there are errors in prepositional usage and sentence construction, such as 'proportion of individuals use their leisure time in six different activities after job'. While the meaning is generally understandable, the frequency of these errors limits the score. Focusing on basic sentence construction and consistent verb tenses will significantly improve the quality of the writing.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.