Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Academic Practice Accelerator · 2026-10-26

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 how the students spend their weekday in UK, Japan and Germany.

Overall, Japanese students consume highest time in studying and lowest time in relaxation and sleeping. German students spend more time in studying and least time in sleeping comparatively UK. While the relaxation time in UK and Germany is equivalent.

In Japan, the expenditure of time in studying is 13% which is far more than the time spend in studying in UK and Germany. In contrast, the time spend in relaxing and sleeping which is 4% and 7% respectively is lower than the time consumed by German and UK students.

In Germany, the time usage of studying is 9% which is one percent greater than UK students whearas the consumption of sleeping time in UK is 0.5% greater than German students. Furthermore, the relaxing time in both countries remain stable.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the main contrast accurately: Japan has the most study time (13 hours) and the least relaxation (4), while UK and Germany both record 7 hours of relaxation. You also compare UK and Germany’s study and sleep figures. However, the overview is not fully reliable: Japanese students’ sleeping time is 7 hours, but this is not the lowest, since the UK figure is 8.5 and Germany’s is 8; the lowest sleep figure is Japan’s, so this part is correct, but the overview’s wording makes the comparison unclear. The figures are also repeatedly given as percentages rather than hours. The response is six words below the required minimum, and some key comparisons, especially the overall range of study times, could be developed more clearly.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a clear four-paragraph structure: an introduction, an overview, and separate paragraphs for Japan and the UK/Germany. This gives the information a generally coherent order, and linking expressions such as “Overall,” “In contrast,” and “Furthermore” help signal relationships. However, the progression is not always smooth because the overview combines several comparisons in sentences that are difficult to interpret, particularly “German students spend more time in studying and least time in sleeping comparatively UK.” The final paragraph also shifts between countries and categories without a fully clear sequence. Grouping the figures by activity or making each comparison explicit would improve cohesion and make references easier to follow.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use a reasonable range of task-related vocabulary, including “illustrates,” “in contrast,” “comparatively,” and “equivalent.” However, several choices are inaccurate or unnatural for describing time in a chart. “Consume highest time,” “expenditure of time,” and “time usage” do not collocate naturally; “spend the most time” or “time spent” would be clearer. “Consumption of sleeping time” is also awkward, and “stable” suggests no change over time rather than equal figures across countries. In addition, describing the values as “13%” and “4%” is inaccurate because the chart reports hours. More precise, natural vocabulary would help communicate the comparisons without distracting the reader.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mix of simple statements and more complex comparisons, using structures such as “which is far more than” and “While the relaxation time…” This shows some range, and the main message is generally understandable. However, some sentence structures are incomplete or awkward: “While the relaxation time in UK and Germany is equivalent” is a dependent clause standing alone, and “German students spend more time in studying and least time in sleeping comparatively UK” lacks a clear comparison structure. There are also errors in agreement and verb forms, as in “the relaxing time in both countries remain stable,” and missing articles in phrases such as “in UK.” Aim for complete clauses and check subject–verb agreement and article use.

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

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