Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-10-05
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 5.0)
The bar chart illustrates the population of participants for different activities at one social centre in melboourne, australia between 2000 and 2020, a period of 20 years.
Generally, it can be noted that marital arts and table tennis fluctuated the most from year 2000 till date while the marital arts started from 36% number of participants and table tennis started from 16% number of participants.
In details, musical performances which started in year 2005 at 0% and the number of participant increased to 19% in year 2020. In Amateur dramatics, the number of participants from 26% to 28% in year 2000 and decreases to 20% in year 2010 till date. In film club, the number of participants decreases from year 2000 at 63% till year 2010 and increases from year 2010 till date.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 4.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 4.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.0
The response fails to meet the minimum length requirement, being 27 words short of the 150-word minimum, which heavily restricts the coverage of the task. Furthermore, the visual data is misinterpreted and incorrectly identified as a bar chart instead of a line graph, and the student incorrectly uses percentages (%) rather than actual participant numbers throughout the text. The overview attempts to highlight some general trends, but it is confused, citing marital arts and table tennis as fluctuating the most while providing inaccurate starting figures. The body details contain severe inaccuracies regarding data points, such as stating musical performances started at 0 percent and increased to 19 percent, and generalising timeframes loosely as 'till date'. Overall, the response responds to the task only minimally and fails to present a clear, accurate summary of the main features.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.5
The essay lacks a clear logical organisation and progression. Information and ideas are not arranged coherently, and the paragraphing is poor, featuring awkward formatting and an excessive gap before the final paragraph. Cohesive devices are weak and repetitive; for instance, the transitions 'Generally' and 'In details' are misused or mechanically applied. Referencing between sentences is unclear, and the relationship between ideas is difficult to follow. To improve, the writer needs to group related data logically, use accurate and varied cohesive links to connect sentences and paragraphs, and ensure a clear overall progression that guides the reader smoothly through the summary without abrupt jumps.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.5
The vocabulary used is basic and repetitive, with noticeable errors that occasionally impede communication. There are frequent spelling and capitalisation errors, such as 'melboourne', 'australia', 'marital' instead of 'martial', and 'In details' instead of 'In detail'. The use of percentages instead of numbers for the scale demonstrates a limited understanding of how to report graph data. While the student attempts some topic-specific words like 'participants', 'centre', and 'activities', the lexical range is barely adequate for the task. To reach a higher band, the writer must expand their vocabulary to describe trends precisely, eliminate spelling errors, use correct geographical and proper noun capitalisation, and avoid confusing units of measurement.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5
The response displays a very limited range of structures, relying mostly on simple and faulty complex sentences. There are frequent grammatical errors in verb tenses, prepositions, and clause structures, such as 'decreases from year 2000 at 63% till year 2010 and increases' (tense inconsistency and awkward prepositional phrasing) and 'the number of participants from 26% to 28% in year 2000 and decreases' (missing verbs and broken sentence structure). Punctuation and article usage are also flawed throughout the text. To improve, the writer needs to demonstrate better control over basic sentence patterns, ensure correct subject-verb agreement, maintain consistent past tenses when reporting historical data from a graph, and reduce the frequency of errors that cause difficulty for the reader.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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