Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Recent IELTS Exams (Canada & India) · 2026-09-02

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 rendered pie charts depict the information regarding the time management of middle aged adults in a nation in 1958 and 2008.

Overview, the maximum percentage of these individuals were working in their time,whereas the minimum percentage time was spent for travelling to their work.

By analysing, it can be clearly seen that in both the years, the highest percentile time was consumed by working adults on working that was 33% in former year and 42% in latter year. Sleeping was the second highest activity among these adults having more than one-forth ratio in both the years.

Moving forward, 19% and 6% of working individuals utilized their time in going out with friends and family in 1958 and 2008, respectively. All other activities such as travelling to work, relaxing at home and playing sports had coverage of less than 10% of time ratio consumed by working adults to spent their day.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response covers the main features of the charts, identifying the primary trends in working and sleeping hours. However, the analysis is somewhat superficial. While you mention the increase in working hours from 33% to 42%, the description of other categories is vague. For instance, grouping 'travelling to work, relaxing at home and playing sports' together as 'less than 10%' ignores the specific data points provided in the charts, which is a requirement for a higher band. To improve, ensure you provide specific data for all categories mentioned and avoid grouping them unless they share identical values.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay is organized into paragraphs, but the logical flow is hindered by awkward phrasing and limited use of cohesive devices. Transitions like 'Moving forward' and 'By analysing' feel mechanical and do not always connect ideas smoothly. The overview is also poorly integrated; starting with 'Overview,' is not a standard way to introduce a summary. To improve, use more sophisticated linking words such as 'In contrast,' 'Furthermore,' or 'Conversely' to show the relationship between the data points in 1958 and 2008.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is adequate for the task but lacks precision and variety. Phrases like 'time management of middle aged adults' and 'percentile time' are used incorrectly or awkwardly. 'Percentile' refers to statistical distribution, not a percentage value. Additionally, 'one-forth ratio' is a misspelling of 'one-fourth' and is not the most natural way to describe a proportion. To improve, focus on using precise terminology for data reporting, such as 'proportion,' 'percentage,' or 'figure,' and ensure collocations are accurate.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The response contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors. Examples include 'the maximum percentage of these individuals were working in their time' (awkward phrasing) and 'in both the years' (should be 'in both years'). There are also issues with article usage and prepositional phrases, such as 'consumed by working adults on working'. While these errors do not completely impede communication, they occur frequently enough to limit the score. Focus on subject-verb agreement and correct preposition usage.

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

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