Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Academic Practice Accelerator · 2026-08-31

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The bar chart shows the typical weekday for students in three different countries.

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

Student answer (Band 5.5)

The bar graph given illustrates the typical weekday for the students in three different countries and they calculate it with three major things which are sleeping, studying, relaxing.

Overall, the three (UK, JAPAN, GERMANY) countries estimate their typical weekday by the three major things which are sleeping, studying, relaxing.

Sleeping is more preferred in UK at around 8.5 hours approximate and then a slight drop in japan to 7 hours which is equal to the relaxation state of the people living in UK and then a gentle rise to 8 hours in Germany.

Japanese students spend by far the most time studying, dedicated to 13 hours per day. This is noticeably higher than in Germany and the UK, where students devote 9 and 8 hours to academic work. Conversely, Japanese students spend the least amount of time relaxing (4 hours per day), where as students living in the UK enjoy the most leisure time at 7 hours, which exactly equal to the people living in Germany at 7 hours.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

You have successfully identified the main features of the bar chart, including the three categories of activities and the three countries. You have also made relevant comparisons, such as noting that Japanese students spend the most time studying and the least time relaxing. However, the introduction and overview are repetitive and slightly awkward in their phrasing, as they restate the same information twice. To improve, ensure your overview highlights the most significant trends rather than just listing the categories. The data points are generally accurate, but the expression of these figures could be more concise and professional to better meet the requirements of an Academic Task 1 response.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The response is organized into logical paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the information. You use some cohesive devices like 'Conversely' and 'Overall' to link ideas. However, the progression between sentences is sometimes mechanical, and the referencing is occasionally repetitive. For instance, the opening two paragraphs repeat the same information about the three countries and three activities, which disrupts the flow. Using more varied linking words and avoiding redundant restatements would improve the overall coherence of your writing.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

You have a sufficient range of vocabulary to convey the information, such as 'noticeably higher', 'devote', and 'academic work'. However, there are some issues with word choice and collocation, such as 'they calculate it with three major things' and 'Sleeping is more preferred in UK'. These phrases sound unnatural. To reach a higher band, focus on using more precise academic vocabulary and improving your collocations. For example, instead of saying 'calculate it with', you could use 'categorized into' or 'divided into'.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

You demonstrate a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are several grammatical errors, such as 'dedicated to 13 hours' (should be 'devoting 13 hours') and 'where as' (should be 'whereas'). Additionally, there are issues with article usage, such as 'in UK' and 'in japan', which should be 'in the UK' and 'in Japan'. While these errors do not impede communication, they occur frequently enough to prevent a higher score. Focusing on subject-verb agreement and consistent article usage will help improve your accuracy.

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

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.