Band 4.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 4.0 · Recent IELTS Exams (Canada & India) · 2026-10-15

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 4.0)

The two pie charts illustrated that the difference between percentage of the day spent by working old agers on range of activities from 1958 to 2008.

Overall, it is clear that the whole procedure shows that the highest percentage of working in both ages and the lowest activity of travelling to work.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 3.0

The response identifies the charts’ subject and attempts an overview, but it does not adequately summarise the data. The claim that working took the largest share in both years is accurate (33% in 1958 and 42% in 2008), but travelling was not the smallest activity in 2008: it accounted for 7%, equal to playing sports, while going out was lowest at 6%. No figures are reported, and the major changes—such as working rising and sleeping and socialising falling—are not described. The response is also substantially below the required 150 words, leaving most of the task unanswered. To improve, include a clear overview and compare the main categories with accurate percentages.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.5

There is a basic attempt to organise the response: an opening sentence introduces the charts, followed by a separate overview beginning “Overall”. This gives the reader a simple structure, and the linking word is appropriate. However, the response ends after these two sentences, so there is no progression into comparisons or supporting details. The overview also combines several ideas in one sentence, making the intended comparison less clear. Develop the report in a logical sequence: introduce the charts, summarise the main overall changes, then group and compare the figures. Use clear links such as “by contrast” or “whereas” to show how the years differ.

Lexical Resource: Band 4.5

The response uses a small amount of task-related vocabulary, including “percentage”, “activities”, “highest” and “lowest”, and the reader can recognise the general topic. However, the range is very limited, and several expressions are inaccurate or unnatural: “working old agers” does not describe the chart’s subjects, while “whole procedure” is not suitable for summarising chart data. “The difference between percentage” is also an awkward phrase. Use precise terms such as “working adults”, “share of the day” and “category”, and choose verbs such as “rose”, “fell” or “accounted for” to report changes. More varied, accurate vocabulary would make the comparisons clearer and more appropriate to an academic report.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 4.5

The response contains two complete sentences and uses a basic complex structure in “that the highest percentage…”, so it communicates an attempt to describe the charts. However, grammatical control is uneven. In the opening, “The two pie charts illustrated that the difference…” does not form a clear grammatical statement; a direct construction such as “The pie charts compare how working adults spent their time…” would be more accurate. The phrase “percentage of the day” also needs an article or plural form, and “the highest percentage of working in both ages” has an unclear grammatical relationship between its parts. The second sentence is more controlled, but its structure remains simple. Practise accurate comparison sentences and check articles, noun forms and clause construction.

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

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