Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Academic Practice Accelerator · 2026-09-24
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 chart illustrates the ordinary weekday for students in three distinct countries.
Overall, In UK majority of students spend their time sleeping whereas in Japan they use their time studying. In Germany, they spend their time studying. All countries spend equal amount of time relaxing except for Japan.
In UK, Students indulge 8.5 hours sleeping. However, they study for 8 hours and relax for total of 7 hours on their weekday. In japan, kids sleep for 7 hours and spend 13 hours studying unlike UK students, they spend most of their time studying. They relax only for a little amount of 4 hours.
Whereas, in Germany, they sleep for 8 hours just a bit less than the UK students. They spend 9 hours studying. Like UK kids, they relax for 7 hours on their weekday. The students in Germany maintain a good balance on their weekday unlike Japan and UK
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5
The student covers all parts of the task by reporting the main features of the chart, including sleeping, studying, and relaxing hours across the UK, Japan, and Germany. An overview is attempted at the beginning, noting general trends, and key comparisons are made between the countries (e.g., Japanese students spend the most time studying, at 13 hours). However, the overview contains minor inaccuracies and over-generalizations, such as stating that 'In UK majority of students spend their time sleeping,' whereas studying is nearly equal (8.5 vs 8 hours), and claiming 'All countries spend equal amount of time relaxing except for Japan,' which overlooks the specific breakdown. Data points like UK sleeping (8.5), studying (8), relaxing (7), Japan sleeping (7), studying (13), relaxing (4), and Germany sleeping (8), studying (9), relaxing (7) are accurately reported. This performance aligns with Band 6.0 descriptors.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5
The response is arranged coherently with a clear overall layout, separating the introduction/overview from body paragraphs. Paragraphing is attempted, though the body paragraphs are somewhat clumped together. Cohesive devices are used to connect ideas, such as 'Overall,' 'However,' 'Unlike UK students,' and 'Whereas,' although some transitions are a bit mechanical or repetitive. Referencing is generally clear, helping the reader follow the comparisons between the three countries. Logical progression is maintained from the overview into specific country details. This performance fits the Band 6.0 descriptor profile.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.5
The vocabulary used is adequate for the task, successfully conveying numerical data and general concepts related to daily routines ('ordinary weekday,' 'indulge,' 'maintain a good balance'). There are attempts to use less common vocabulary, but word choice is occasionally unnatural or imprecise, such as 'Students indulge 8.5 hours sleeping' or 'for a little amount of 4 hours.' Spelling is generally accurate, but minor lexical infelicities occur throughout the text. The range is sufficient to communicate the main features clearly, corresponding to a Band 6.0.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5
The writer employs a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, such as concessive clauses ('unlike UK students, they spend most of their time studying'). However, there are noticeable grammatical errors and punctuation issues, including capitalization errors ('In UK,' 'In japan'), missing articles ('In UK, Students'), and minor prepositional flaws. Despite these errors, meaning is rarely impeded, and the sentence structures demonstrate an adequate attempt at variety. This fits the Band 6.0 descriptor criteria.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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