Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Academic Practice Accelerator · 2026-11-01

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 shows how students in UK, Japan and Germany spend their weekdays. Three types of routines have been considered for comparsion that are sleeping, studying and relaxing.

Overall, the students spend most of their time in studying, while they spend least of the time in relaxing.

The students in UK spends more time in sleeping and least time in relaxing during the weekdays. Students in Japan have pretty much different trend for their routines. They spend most of the time in studying while spend least in relaxing. In Germany, the weekdays routine of students follows the trend in Japan. They study for the most and relax for the least of the time during weekdays. The main difference between the trend in Japan and Germany is: in Japan, the time spend by students in sleeping or relaxing is far less than they spend in studying, while the difference is relatively small in case of Germany.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the three countries and activities, and your overview correctly notes that studying is the main activity in Japan and Germany and relaxing is generally the least. However, the overview is too broad: studying is not the largest category overall in the UK, where sleeping is slightly higher. Some comparisons are also inaccurate or unclear. For example, UK students do not spend the least time relaxing among the three countries; Japan does. The claim that Japan and Germany follow the same trend overlooks that Germany’s figures are much closer together. To strengthen the response, report the key figures (UK: 8.5, 8 and 7 hours; Japan: 7, 13 and 4; Germany: 8, 9 and 7) and make the contrasts precise.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a clear overall arrangement: an introduction, an overview, and comparisons by country. This makes the main topic easy to follow, and phrases such as “Overall” and “The main difference” help signal the direction of the discussion. However, the progression is somewhat repetitive: the statements that Japan and Germany study most and relax least repeat the overview without adding much detail. The final comparison is also difficult to follow because it describes the difference between Japan and Germany in general terms rather than anchoring it in figures. Develop a more logical sequence by presenting the overall pattern first, then comparing the countries with specific data, and use references such as “these figures” only when their meaning is clear.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant vocabulary for describing routines, including “spend,” “trend,” “difference,” and “comparison,” so the topic remains understandable. However, the range is limited and several expressions are imprecise or unnatural, such as “pretty much different trend,” “least of the time,” and “the time spend by students.” There is also a spelling error in “comparsion.” Repeated use of “spend” and “time” makes the description less flexible. Use more precise chart language, such as “recorded,” “accounted for,” “the highest figure,” and “the lowest figure,” while ensuring that collocations are natural. For instance, “a markedly different pattern” is clearer than “pretty much different trend.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mix of simple and more complex sentences, including the contrast introduced by “while” and the comparison beginning “The main difference…”. Most of the meaning is recoverable, but some grammatical errors remain. In “The students in UK spends,” the subject and verb do not agree, and the country name needs an article: “students in the UK spend.” The phrase “while spend least” lacks a subject, and “the time spend by students” uses an incorrect verb form; write “the time spent by students.” The colon before “in Japan” is also awkward in this sentence. Aim for accurate subject–verb agreement and complete clauses, then check verb forms and punctuation in longer comparisons.

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