Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-10-25

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 line graph illustrates the numbers of participants for different activities in Melbourne, Australia for the period 2000 to 2020.

Overall, it shows a rapid increase in the participation of table tennis, while a sudden fall in amateur dramatics. Moreover, other activities almost remained constant except the musical performances, it shows a slight increase.

In contrast, the table tennis have few participants ranging from 10-20 for the period 2000 to 2010, but after this, it shows a rapid increase in the participants going upto 55 over the 10 year period. While the amateur dramatics saw a sudden fall from almost 30 participants in year 2005 to 2-3 particpants in year 2020.

On the other hand, the film club and the martial arts activities remained constant, ranging between 60-70 and 30-40 participants respectively. for the 20 year period. But, the musical performances participants got interested in the year 2005 going upto 20 participants for the period 2005 to 2020.

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response5.5
Coherence and Cohesion6.0
Lexical Resource5.5
Grammatical Range and Accuracy5.5
Overall5.5

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the main contrast between table tennis, which rises markedly, and amateur dramatics, which declines, and you note that film club and martial arts are comparatively stable. However, some details are inaccurate: amateur dramatics falls to about 6 participants, not 2–3, and musical performances begin to rise in 2010, not 2005. The overview also says other activities “almost remained constant,” which overlooks the substantial growth in table tennis and the steady increase in musical performances. The response is one word below the required 150-word minimum. To strengthen the report, give a more precise overview and support it with accurate key figures and changes across the period.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a clear overall arrangement: an introduction, an overview, and two paragraphs comparing the activities. This makes the main trends easy to locate. You also use signposts such as “Overall,” “In contrast,” and “On the other hand.” However, some linking is mechanical or awkward: “In contrast” does not clearly connect the table-tennis trend to the preceding overview, and “While” begins a fragment after the table-tennis sentence. The final paragraph also shifts abruptly from stable activities to musical performances. Grouping the rising series together and the stable or declining series together, with clearer links between sentences, would create smoother progression.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant vocabulary for describing trends, including “rapid increase,” “sudden fall,” “remained constant,” and “ranging between,” so the reader can understand the broad comparisons. However, some word choices and collocations are imprecise, such as “the musical performances participants got interested” and “the table tennis have few participants.” “Few” is also less suitable than a neutral description of the number shown. There are spelling errors in “particpants” and “upto,” and repeated use of “participants” makes the wording less varied. Aim for accurate trend language such as “the number of participants rose” and “attendance at musical performances increased,” while checking spelling and avoiding awkward phrasing.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and more complex sentence forms, including clauses introduced by “while” and “except,” and the overall meaning is generally understandable. Some grammatical errors remain, however. For example, “the table tennis have” has incorrect subject–verb agreement, and “it shows a slight increase” is an unclear clause attached to the preceding sentence. “While the amateur dramatics saw…” is not smoothly integrated with the sentence before it, and “for the 20 year period” begins with an unnecessary lowercase letter after a full stop. Use complete, well-linked sentences and check agreement, articles, and punctuation. Greater control of these structures would make the comparisons clearer.

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