Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-09-18
IELTS Writing Task 1 question
The graph below gives information on the numbers of participants for different activities at one social centre in Melbourne, Australia for the period 2000 to 2020.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.
Student answer (Band 5.5)
The graph below illustrates data on the number of participants for five activities at one social centre in Melbourne, Australia, during the twenty-year period.
Overall, it can be seen that the musical performances and table tennis saw a rapid increase, whereas amateur dramatics declined drastically over the period of twenty years. Martial arts and the film club remained in nearly the same position after experiencing fluctuations.
To begin with, the film club peaked in 2000, with about 65 people participating. It accounted for a steady fall in the year 2010 and again went to its previous position in 2020. Moreover, although it the number of the Table tennis participants surged over the teo decades,
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0
The student attempts to address the prompt by summarising the main features of the graph, correctly identifying general trends such as the increases in table tennis and musical performances, and the decline in amateur dramatics. An overview is successfully provided in the second paragraph. However, the response is incomplete, cutting off mid-sentence ("...although it the number of the Table tennis participants surged over the teo decades,"). Furthermore, the length requirement of 150 words is not met, as the text contains only 114 words. Due to the incomplete nature and failure to meet the minimum word count, Task Achievement is penalised and capped at Band 5.0.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0
The response shows a clear attempt at logical organisation, beginning with an introductory sentence, followed by an overview paragraph ("Overall, it can be seen that..."), and the start of a body paragraph ("To begin with..."). Cohesive devices such as "whereas" and "Moreover" are used appropriately. However, because the text cuts off abruptly, paragraphing and overall logical progression cannot be fully evaluated for a complete task response. Referencing is generally clear up to the point of interruption. Coherence and cohesion are judged at Band 5.0 due to the fragmented and unfinished structure.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The student demonstrates an adequate vocabulary range for the task, attempting some less common lexical items such as "fluctuations", "drastically", and "surged". There are a few minor lexical and typographical errors, such as "teo decades" instead of "two decades", but these do not heavily impede comprehension. The phrasing used in the introduction and overview is reasonably natural, showing that the writer has sufficient vocabulary to discuss trends and figures, though it remains somewhat basic overall.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The writing contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, such as "whereas amateur dramatics declined drastically over the period of twenty years" and subordinate clauses introduced by "although". There are grammatical errors present, most notably the awkward and ungrammatical fragment near the end ("although it the number of the Table tennis participants"). Punctuation is generally accurate in the completed sentences, but the syntax breaks down completely in the final incomplete sentence.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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