Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Academic Practice Accelerator · 2026-10-30

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 chat illustrates thr way of students spending their weekends across three different categories in UK, Japan and Germany.

Overall,Studying was clearly the largest way of spending time, and relaxing was the smallest across all given countries. Sleeping remains almost the intermediate.

In Japan , students are more invested in studying followed by sleeping and relaxing with large margin. In UK and Germany, sleeping remains at almost same level which is 8.5 and 8 respectively.

It is clearly shown that relaxing is the least activity in which students are interested in. The lowest hours students relax is recorded in Japan with 4 hours whereas in UK and Germany, the hours for relaxing remains equal which is 7 hours making it the least engaged actrivity in all the three countries.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify relevant overall features, including Japan’s high study figure and its low relaxation figure, and you compare the UK and Germany for sleeping and relaxing. However, the overview is not fully accurate: studying is not the largest activity in every country, since UK and Germany students sleep for more hours than they study. The response also omits several key comparisons, especially the study figures for the UK and Germany, and gives limited detail about the chart as a whole. The task requires at least 150 words, and this response is 20 words short. To strengthen the report, describe the main pattern accurately, include the important figures across all three activities, and meet the required length.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure, moving from an introduction and overview to country-specific details, so the reader can follow its general purpose. However, progression is limited because the final paragraph repeats the point that relaxing is the least popular activity, already stated in the overview. Some linking is also awkward or mechanical, as in “followed by sleeping and relaxing with large margin,” and the comparison between countries is not consistently organised. Grouping the figures by activity or comparing the countries systematically would make the report easier to follow. Use paragraphing to separate the overview from the key comparisons, and avoid repeating a feature unless the later mention adds new data.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use some relevant vocabulary for describing the chart, including “largest,” “smallest,” “intermediate,” and “recorded,” and the main meaning is generally understandable. However, several choices are inaccurate or unnatural for this task. “Way of students spending their weekends” misrepresents the chart, which shows a typical weekday, while “more invested in studying” and “least engaged activity” are imprecise descriptions of time allocation. There are also noticeable spelling errors, including “chat” for “chart,” “thr” for “the,” and “actrivity.” Aim for precise, neutral reporting language and check spelling carefully. Phrases such as “spent the most time studying” and “the fewest hours were spent relaxing” would be clearer and more appropriate.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a range of sentence forms, including an overview sentence and comparisons introduced by “whereas,” and most of the intended meaning can be understood. However, errors in sentence construction and punctuation are frequent enough to make the writing less controlled. For example, “Overall,Studying” lacks a space after the comma, and “In Japan , students are more invested in studying followed by sleeping and relaxing with large margin” has awkward, incomplete comparison structure. The phrase “the hours for relaxing remains equal” also has subject–verb disagreement. Practise forming complete comparison sentences, checking agreement and articles, and using commas and spaces consistently. More accurate simple sentences would improve clarity before you add complex structures.

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

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