Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Recent IELTS Exams (Canada & India) · 2026-09-03

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 6.5)

The two pie chart compare how working adults divided there day between five or six activities in 1998 and 2008.

Overall, working hours grew substantially between the two years and become the dominant use of time by 2008, whereas socializing with friends and family declined sharply over the same period. It is also worth noting that playing sports emerged as a distinct activity in 2008, having been negligible.

Looking first at the largest categories, working accounted for the greatest share of the adult's time in both years, rising from 33% in 1956 to 42% in 2008, which made an even more dominant activity by the later date. Sleeping, meanwhile, followed the opposite pattern: although it remain the second largest activity throughout, the proportion of the time devoted to it fell slightly, from 32% to 25%, suggested that work increasingly encroached upon rest. Releasing at home, however, rose from a modest 8% to 13%, indicating that adults may have compensated for reduced sleep by resting in other way once there working day had ended.

Turning to the smallest categories, the proportion of time spent going out with friends and family fell considerably, from 19% in 1958 to just 6% in 2008, representing the sharpest decline on any activity across the two years. Time spent travelling to work more than triple over the same period, climbing from 2% to 7%, which may reflect longer commuting distance as cities expanded. Finally, playing sports accounted for 7% of adults time in 2008, a category that did not appear as a significant proportion of the day in 1998, pointing to a shift in how leisure time itself came to spent.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The response effectively identifies and reports the main features of the data. You have successfully highlighted the key trends, such as the increase in working hours and the decline in social activities. The comparisons between 1958 and 2008 are clear and relevant. However, there are some inconsistencies in the data cited: you mention 1998 instead of 1958 in the introduction and the final paragraph, and you cite 1956 instead of 1958 in the body. These minor inaccuracies in data reporting slightly detract from the precision required for a higher band. Nevertheless, the overall summary is well-structured and covers all parts of the task.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The essay is logically organized with a clear introduction, an overview, and two body paragraphs that group information by category (largest vs. smallest). The progression of ideas is smooth, and you use a variety of cohesive devices such as 'meanwhile', 'however', and 'turning to'. Paragraphing is used effectively to separate different aspects of the data. While the flow is generally good, some referencing is slightly repetitive, and the transition between sentences could be even more sophisticated to achieve a higher band. Overall, the structure is clear and easy to follow.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.5

You demonstrate a sufficient range of vocabulary to convey information with precision, using terms like 'dominant', 'negligible', 'encroached', and 'compensated'. There is an awareness of style and collocation, which allows for a natural flow. However, there are a few minor errors in word choice and form, such as 'Releasing at home' (likely meant 'Relaxing') and 'in other way' (should be plural 'ways'). These slips do not impede communication but prevent the response from reaching the highest band. Expanding your range of synonyms for 'increase' and 'decrease' would further strengthen your writing.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures effectively. There are several error-free sentences, and your control of grammar is generally good. However, there are recurring errors that prevent a higher score, such as subject-verb agreement issues ('it remain', 'adults time' instead of 'adults' time'), and minor tense inconsistencies ('more than triple' instead of 'tripled'). While these errors are noticeable, they rarely impede the reader's understanding. To improve, focus on proofreading for small grammatical slips like missing possessive apostrophes and verb endings.

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

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