Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-09-21
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 illustrates the number of participants in different activities at a one social center in Melbourne, Australia from the year 2000 to 2020.
Overall, the activities include film club, martial art, amateur dramatics, table tennis and musical performances.The highest number of participants was in 2020 in the film club which were around 67 participants and lowest number of participants were in the musical performance in the year 2000 with 0 participants.
In musical performance from the year (2000, 2005, 2010, 2015, 2020) the number of competitors were 0, 0, 10, 15, and 16. Table tennis players from same years were 18, 19, 19, 38 and 50. The participants in amateur dramatice from the year ( 2000, 2005, 2010, 2015, 2020) were 25, 26, 20, 13 and around 8.
Martial arts competitors in the given years were 38, 33, 39, 37 and 37.5. The highest proportion was in film club around 62 to 65 participants in the given years.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The student addresses the main features of the graph, selecting and reporting data for the various activities from 2000 to 2020. However, the attempt at an overview is weak, merely listing the activities rather than identifying major trends, such as the dramatic rise of table tennis and the decline of amateur dramatics. Furthermore, the body paragraphs rely heavily on listing raw numerical data for every single year rather than selecting and comparing salient features effectively. There are also minor inaccuracies in quoting specific figures, such as stating musical performances had 10 participants in 2010 when the graph shows approximately 12. Consequently, the response satisfies the basic requirements of Task Achievement but lacks fully developed comparison and synthesis, aligning well with a Band 5.5 descriptor profile.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0
The response has a discernible overall arrangement, beginning with an introduction, an overview paragraph, and subsequent detail paragraphs. However, progression is hindered by a lack of logical links between sentences and paragraphs, making the text feel disjointed and mechanical. Cohesive devices are minimal and sometimes repetitive. The paragraphing is also problematic, as the second paragraph abruptly combines a partial overview with a fragmented listing of data points. Additionally, referencing is occasionally unclear, such as referring to 'same years' without smooth transitions. While the information is grouped by activity, the lack of cohesive control and poor paragraph structure pulls this criterion into the Band 5.0 range.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary to discuss the data, incorporating terms such as 'participants', 'proportion', and specific activity names. However, there are notable word choice and spelling inaccuracies, such as 'amateur dramatice' instead of 'dramatics', 'martial art' instead of 'arts', and referring to participants as 'competitors' in a social centre context. Less common lexical items are attempted but lack precision and natural collocation. Spelling and morphological errors occur frequently enough to cause occasional hesitation for the reader, but they do not completely impede communication. These characteristics place the lexical performance firmly at Band 5.5.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but control over grammar is inconsistent. There are several grammatical errors and awkward phrasings throughout the text, such as 'at a one social center' (article and preposition misuse), 'which were around 67 participants' (subject-verb agreement and relative clause issues), and listing parenthetical data lists like '(2000, 2005, 2010, 2015, 2020)'. Punctuation errors are also present, including missing spaces after periods and awkward sentence boundaries. Although simple sentences are generally understandable, attempts at more complex formulations frequently contain errors that cause some difficulty for the reader, justifying a Band 5.0.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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