Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Recent IELTS Exams (Canada & India) · 2026-10-05

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 two pie charts illustrate yhe percentages of time that working adults spent on different activities in a particular country in 1958 and 2008.

Overall, working was the largest activity in both years. While sleeping was declined in both years. The proportion of time spent on sleeping, and going out with friends and family decreased noticeably.

In 1958, the percentage of the working was largest at 33%, while sleeping decreased little bit at 32%. In 2008, the percentage of working was 42% which was enough according to 1958. While sleeping was 25% which declined in 2008. In 1958, relaxing at home was 8%, while relaxing increased in 2008 and reach at 13%.

The percentage of going out with friends and family was 19%, which rapidly decreased in 2008 and stop at 6%. In 1958, travelling was 2% which rapidly in creased at 7% in 2008. Playing sports was not included in 1958, however in 2008 playing sports was 7%.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

The response successfully addresses all parts of the task by selecting and reporting the main features of the pie charts while making relevant comparisons between 1958 and 2008. The candidate clearly identifies that working was the largest activity in both years and highlights key shifts such as the increase in working and travelling, alongside the decrease in sleeping and socialising. However, some ideas are slightly under-developed or expressed with a degree of confusion, such as stating 'while sleeping was declined in both years' or asserting that 42% was 'enough according to 1958'. To reach a higher level, the data descriptions need to be more precise and fully supported with clearer analytical commentary rather than simply listing isolated statistics.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response maintains a coherent overall arrangement and follows a logical structure, beginning with a clear introductory paraphrase and an overview sentence. Paragraphing is used to separate the introduction from the body details, showing a basic level of organisation. However, progression is somewhat hindered by mechanical and repetitive cohesive devices, such as the frequent and formulaic use of 'while' to introduce contrasting points (e.g., 'while sleeping was declined', 'while sleeping was 25%', 'while relaxing increased'). Referencing and transitions between sentences can feel abrupt, lacking the smooth flow and sophisticated logical relationships characteristic of higher bands. Better variation in linking words and clearer referencing would significantly enhance the overall cohesion of the report.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

The writer uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully attempting less common lexical items related to time use and statistical trends, such as 'proportion', 'noticeably', and 'rapidly decreased'. However, there are noticeable lexical inaccuracies, awkward word choices, and spelling errors that prevent a higher score. For example, the typographical error 'yhe' appears in the opening sentence, 'working was the largest activity' is a slightly unnatural collocation, and phrases like 'decreased little bit' or 'stop at 6%' demonstrate limited precision. While communication is not severely impeded, these vocabulary slips and awkward phrasings restrict the response to a modest band level.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The response employs a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating an attempt to use relative clauses and comparative structures. However, there are frequent grammatical errors throughout the text, particularly regarding verb forms, voice, and prepositions. Examples include passive and active voice confusion ('while sleeping was declined'), tense inconsistencies ('sleeping decreased little bit'), missing prepositions or awkward prepositional phrases ('reach at 13%', 'rapidly in creased'), and awkward clause integration ('which was enough according to 1958'). These errors require some effort from the reader to decode, though they rarely impede overall communication entirely. Greater control over basic sentence mechanics and grammatical accuracy is needed.

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

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