Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-09-07

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The charts below give information about a public library in a town called Little Chalfont.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

 

Student answer (Band 5.5)

The illustration includes one pie chart, one bar graph, and a table, each providing different information about library in Little Chalfont.

Overall,most of the library members are adult. The highest total loan was recorded against children's fictionand adut fiction categories in 2016.

looking in detail at pie chart, it represents proportion of library members by age. 51% was reported as adults followed by 22% for children, 12% for adults over 65 and 15% for young adults.

looking in detail at table, it provides information about the loan reported against book categories.highest 38% loan was recorded for both children fiction and adult fiction categories. In contrast only 1% of loans are taken for children's DVDs category.

looking in detail at bar graph, it presents the number of loans taken for 9 year spanning-2007 to 2016. the highest, 22,000 loans were taken in 2016 followed by 21000 in 2015 and 2011 respectively.however, least number of loans almost 16000 were recorded in 2007 respectively.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response covers all three charts and identifies key features, such as the age distribution and the peak loan years. However, the analysis is somewhat mechanical and lacks a cohesive synthesis. While the main features are highlighted, the comparison between categories could be more analytical rather than just listing percentages. For example, noting that fiction books dominate the library's circulation compared to other media would have strengthened the response. The overview is present but could be more effectively integrated to provide a clearer summary of the trends across all three data sources.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organised into paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the information. However, the use of cohesive devices is repetitive and mechanical, with almost every paragraph starting with 'looking in detail at'. There is a lack of varied linking words to connect ideas within and between sentences. While the progression of information is logical, the transitions between the different charts feel disjointed. Improving the variety of cohesive devices and ensuring smoother transitions would significantly enhance the flow of the writing.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is adequate for the task, allowing the writer to convey the necessary information about percentages and numbers. However, the range is limited and somewhat repetitive. There are minor errors in word choice and collocation, such as '9 year spanning' instead of '9-year span' and 'adut' (spelling error). To reach a higher band, the student should aim to use more precise academic vocabulary, such as 'accounted for', 'constituted', or 'fluctuated', rather than relying on basic verbs like 'is' or 'was reported'.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The response contains a mix of simple and some complex sentence structures. There are several grammatical errors, including missing articles ('the library', 'the pie chart'), punctuation issues, and inconsistent capitalization. The phrase 'respectively' is used incorrectly at the end of the final sentence, as it does not refer back to two distinct sets of data in a way that requires that term. While these errors do not prevent the reader from understanding the data, they occur frequently enough to limit the score. More attention to subject-verb agreement and article usage is needed.

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

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