Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Recent IELTS Exams (Canada & India) · 2026-09-19

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 6.0)

The pie chart below shows how working adults in a particular country spend their time in 1958 and in 2008.

Overall, Most adults spend their time working, regardless of the past or the present. This is followed bysleeping time. Some activities got less time spent on while some others got more time spent on.

First, people are spending more time working and less time sleeping, varying from 33% to 42% for working and from 32% to 25% for sleeping between 1958 and 2008 respectively. In addition to this, even more time is spent travelling to work, from 2% in 1958 to 7% in 2008.

Next, less time is spent going with friends and family, dropping from 19% in 1958 to 6% in 2008. In contrast, more time is spent relaxing at home, rising from 8% in 1958 to 13% in 2008.

Notably, the time spent on playing sports remained the same, at 7% for 1958 and 2008.

This highlights key changes in time distribution for the working adults in these years, 5 decades apart.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The student covers all parts of the task well, successfully identifying the main features and making relevant comparisons between 1958 and 2008. The overview captures the dominant activities ('Most adults spend their time working') and the general shifts. However, there is a factual error in the text regarding playing sports: the student claims it 'remained the same, at 7% for 1958 and 2008', but the source data shows playing sports was only present in 2008 at 7% and was not recorded in the 1958 chart. Despite this misinterpretation, the key trends for working, sleeping, travelling, and socializing are accurately reported and supported with appropriate data points, satisfying the requirements for a Band 6.5 or 7.0.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The response is organized logically with a clear overall progression. The essay begins with an introduction and a summary overview, followed by well-defined body paragraphs grouping related data, and ends with a concluding summary sentence. Cohesive devices such as 'In addition to this', 'In contrast', and 'Notably' are used appropriately to guide the reader through the comparisons. Paragraphing is sufficient and functional. However, some referencing is slightly clumsy (e.g., repeating 'more time is spent' and 'less time is spent' mechanically), preventing it from reaching the higher bands. Overall, the structure is coherent and easy to follow.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully incorporating terms such as 'distribution', 'varying', 'dropping', and 'rising'. However, there are instances of unnatural phrasing and word choice, such as 'Some activities got less time spent on' and 'going with friends and family' (missing the preposition 'out'). While the vocabulary is sufficient to convey the intended meaning, attempts at less common lexical items are limited and occasionally inaccurate. Spelling is generally accurate, but the lexical range lacks the flexibility and precision required for Band 7.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The student demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, such as participial phrases ('varying from 33% to 42%') and subordinate clauses ('while some others got more time spent on'). There are some grammatical errors and awkward phrasing, notably the passive structure 'got less time spent on' which is informal and imprecise. Punctuation is generally acceptable, and errors do not impede communication. The control of grammar is decent, but frequent reliance on simpler structures and minor inaccuracies keep this criterion at a Band 6.0.

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

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