Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Recent IELTS Exams (Canada & India) · 2026-09-30

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 pie charts illustrate how the percentage of working adults in a specific nation spent their time in 1958 and 2008.

Overall, it is clear that the percentage for working represented the majority of the pie graphs in both years, whereas traveling to work was the lowest activity in 1958 but going out with friends/family became the lowest performed activity in 2008. A new category was added in 2008, playing sports.

Looking at the details, in 1958, working was the highest activity done by working adults, accounting for 33%, which then increased to 42% in 2008. Similarly, relaxing at home and travelling to work both grew, going from 8% and 2% to 13% and 7% respectively. A new figure was added to the pie graph in 2008, playing sports, which represented 7%.

Conversely, going out with friends/family began at 19%, which saw a substantial decline to 6% in 2008, having the lowest percentage in the pie graph. Another figure that decreased was sleeping, going from 32% in 1958 to 25% in 2008.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

The student successfully addresses all parts of the prompt by selecting, reporting, and comparing the main features of the pie charts from 1958 and 2008. An overview is provided in the second paragraph, highlighting key trends such as working representing the majority in both years and the introduction of a new category. The data points cited, such as working increasing from 33% to 42% and going out with friends/family declining from 19% to 6%, are accurate according to the provided visual reference. All necessary comparisons are made clearly, and the response meets the minimum length requirement.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The response is logically organised with a clear introduction, overview, and body paragraphs that group details effectively. Information and ideas progress logically throughout the text. Cohesive devices are used appropriately to link sentences and ideas, such as 'Overall', 'Looking at the details', and 'Conversely'. Paragraphing is used sufficiently and appropriately, separating the overview from the detailed body paragraphs, although the organisation of specific data points could be slightly more polished to achieve a higher band.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary suitable for the task, incorporating appropriate vocabulary such as 'substantive decline', 'respectively', and 'percentage'. There are some slightly awkward lexical choices, such as 'working was the highest activity done by working adults' (where 'working' is repeated and 'activity' is imprecise for a time allocation) and 'lowest performed activity'. However, the vocabulary is sufficient to convey the meaning clearly, and there are no severe spelling or word-choice errors that impede communication.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.5

The response displays a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating control over structures such as relative clauses and participial phrases (e.g., 'accounting for 33%, which then increased...'). There are frequent error-free sentences, and grammar and punctuation are generally well controlled. While minor stylistic issues exist, such as 'the percentage for working represented the majority' (where 'working time' or 'time spent working' would be more precise), these errors do not impede communication.

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

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