Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Recent IELTS Exams (Canada & India) · 2026-09-12

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)

As a part of the question, two statistical plots known as pie charts are provided. They represent the percentage of a day spent by working adults on various activities, both in 1958 and 2008.

In the year 1958, we can see the working adults spending the majority of their day in working, whereas sleeping comes a very close second. We can safely say that, equal amount of time was spent in both working and sleeping, that is 1/3rd of a day. The rest of the day had activities like going out with friends and family or relaxing at home, slightly more than 1/4th of a day combined. 6% of the day was spent in playing some kind of sports or physical activity. A very small amount of time was spent in commuting to the workplace.

But 2008 gives us a somewhat different picture. Time at work has now become 42%, a very sharp increase from 1958. Sleeping has gone down to 25% but the time spent for relaxation has increased to 13%. As commute time has sharply increased to 7%, it has occupied the time which were previously used for going out with friend and family, reducing it to just 6%. The time spent in physical activity has stayed quite the same from 1958, staying at around 7%.

To conclude, we can safely say that there are a few striking differences between 1958 and 2008. The working time and the commute to work has increased significantly, eating up the time to sleep and going out with friends. More work requires more relaxation and thus it has increased. But the only good sign is that the time alloted for physical activities has remained the same throughout.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The student successfully addresses all parts of the task by reporting the main features of the two pie charts and making relevant comparisons between 1958 and 2008. The overview is integrated well into the conclusion and body paragraphs. Key data points, such as the 33% spent on working and sleeping in 1958 and the rise to 42% for work in 2008, are accurately highlighted. However, the tone occasionally leans slightly towards personal commentary rather than strictly academic description (e.g., 'We can safely say', 'the only good sign is that'), which slightly hinders a fully neutral academic presentation. Nevertheless, the response covers all main trends adequately, meriting a solid band score for this criterion.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The response features a clear overall arrangement with logical paragraphing. Each paragraph has a distinct focus: introduction, 1958 data, 2008 data, and a concluding overview. Cohesive devices are used to guide the reader through the comparison, using transition words like 'In the year 1958', 'But 2008 gives us', and 'To conclude'. However, referencing is occasionally imprecise (e.g., 'it has occupied the time which were previously used', where the pronoun antecedent agreement and reference link are a bit clunky). Paragraphing is appropriate, but the logical progression could be smoother with more varied cohesive language.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully incorporating terms such as 'statistical plots', 'majority', 'sharply increase', and 'striking differences'. There are some attempts at less common vocabulary, but word choices occasionally lack precision or natural collocation, such as 'spending ... in working' instead of 'spent working' or 'spending time on work'. There are also minor awkward phrasings like 'time alloted for physical activities'. Spelling is generally accurate throughout the essay. The lexical range is sufficient to convey the information clearly, though it remains somewhat basic in places.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The student uses a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating control over basic structures and attempting some more complex formations. However, grammatical inaccuracies appear throughout the text. For instance, there is a subject-verb agreement error with 'the time which were previously used' (should be 'was'). Other minor issues include awkward preposition usage like 'spent in playing' or 'spent in commuting'. Punctuation is generally fine, and these errors rarely impede communication, allowing the reader to easily follow the intended meaning. This performance fits the descriptor for a band 6.0.

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

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