Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Recent IELTS Exams (Canada & India) · 2026-10-12

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 5.5)

The pie charts illustrate the percentage of a working adult's day spent on different activities in a particular country in 1958 and 2008.

Overall, the most eye-catching information is in both the years 1958 and 2008, the majority of adults are working in their spending time and contains highest proportion in the pie chart. Sleeping is the second most favourite activity for adults in both years. But in 1958, traveling to work was the least common activity done by adults, and in 2008 the percentage increased by 5 percentage points.

In detail, going out with family and friends was the third most popular activity among adults, but then the percentage drastically reduced in 2008. In 2008, playing sports was also popular among adults because they were health-conscious over that period of time.

Relaxing at home became more popular compared to 1958. Adults started prioritising their mental health rather than doing work.

In conclusion, in 2008 there were more working adults compared to 1958, and the sleeping is also reduced in adults, but relaxing at home increased. Adults started playing sports in their free time, spending more than in compared to 1958. But they also reduced the time spending with their family and friends and focused on relaxing and sleeping.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify several important patterns, including work being the largest category in both years, sleeping being second, and travel to work rising from 2% to 7%. You also note the sharp fall in socialising and the increase in time spent relaxing at home. However, the overview is not fully accurate: work was the largest single category, but it did not represent a majority, since it accounted for 33% and 42%. The claim that adults became health-conscious is an unsupported explanation, and the conclusion adds an unsupported comparison about spending more time on sports than in 1958, when sports is not listed. A clearer summary of the main changes, supported by the actual figures, would make the report more complete and precise.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure, with an introduction, an overview, detail paragraphs and a concluding paragraph. This gives the reader some organisation, and phrases such as “In detail” signal a shift to specific information. However, progression is weakened by repeating the same points: the conclusion restates changes already mentioned rather than adding a useful synthesis. Some links are also unclear or mechanical, particularly “But in 1958” and “In conclusion,” which introduces another list of details. The ideas about sports and mental health interrupt the comparison because they are not clearly connected to chart evidence. Grouping the figures into increases and decreases, then using precise comparisons within those groups, would create a more coherent progression.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant vocabulary for describing charts, including “percentage,” “proportion,” “reduced,” “increased,” and “popular.” This gives you enough language to communicate the broad trends. However, several choices are imprecise or unnatural for an academic report: “the most eye-catching information” is informal, “the second most favourite activity” is awkward, and “the percentage drastically reduced” does not specify what the percentage refers to. “Adults started prioritising their mental health” also introduces an interpretation rather than describing the data. Aim for more precise chart language and natural collocations, such as saying that a share “rose” or “fell” and naming the activity each time. This would make comparisons clearer and reduce repetition of “popular.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mixture of simple and longer sentences, and the main message is generally understandable. However, complex sentences are not consistently controlled. For example, “the majority of adults are working in their spending time and contains highest proportion” has faulty clause structure and agreement, while “in both the years 1958 and 2008” is an awkward grammatical construction. There are also problems with articles and sentence structure in “the sleeping is also reduced in adults,” and the final sentence, “spending more than in compared to 1958,” is difficult to follow. Use shorter, complete sentences when making comparisons, and check that each clause has a clear subject and verb. More accurate control of these patterns would make the report easier to read.

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

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