Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Academic Practice Accelerator · 2026-09-16
IELTS Writing Task 1 question
The line graph shows the number of first time visitors and returning visitors who visited Caryl Island from 2000 to 2008.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.
The line graph shows the number of first time visitors and returning visitors who visited Caryl Island from 2000 to 2008.
Student answer (Band 5.5)
The given line graph illustrates the information of first time visiting tourists alongwith returned visitors in Caryl Island over an 8-year period from 2000 to 2008.
Overall, it can be observed that the number of visitors with initial experience accounted for steady rise, before experiencing a significant decline. Meanwhile, the number of repeating tourists grew consistently, before dipping suddenly, by late 2006.
At the beginning of the period, the number of tourists visited the first time was 8000, which was the highest among both categories. Following two years, the number of tourists dropped to 4000. After that it increased consistently, with reaching a peak of around 12000, by 2008.
Regarding the amount of second time visitors, in 2000, it recorded a mere 3000, overtaking the number of first time visitors in 2001. Notably, it witnessed the dramatic growth and stood at 150,00, before dimininshing towards the end of the period at just above 14000.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0
The student attempts to address the prompt by reporting the main features and trends of both categories on Caryl Island. However, there are notable inaccuracies in reading the data. For instance, the student states that the first-time visitors' trend saw a "significant decline" before 2008, when the graph actually shows a strong upward trajectory from 2002 to 11800 in 2008. Similarly, the peak for returning visitors is misreported as "150,00" (likely a typo for 15,200), and the overall description of trends contains contradictions regarding the timeline. While an overview is present, the misinterpretation of key data points prevents the response from achieving a higher band score.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The response is organized into four paragraphs, including an introduction, an overview, and separate body paragraphs for each visitor category. Cohesive devices such as "Overall," "Meanwhile," and "Following two years" are employed to guide the reader through the data. However, referencing and logical progression are occasionally hindered by inaccurate reporting of the data points and awkward transitions, such as "After that it increased consistently, with reaching a peak". Paragraphing is adequate, but overall cohesion feels mechanical rather than completely natural.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The student demonstrates an adequate vocabulary for the task, attempting less common lexical items such as "initial experience", "repeating tourists", and "diminishing". However, there are notable lexical and typographical errors, such as "visiting tourists alongwith returned visitors", "tourists visited the first time" (omission of preposition), and a major transcription error with the number "150,00". These inaccuracies, along with slightly unnatural collocations like "second time visitors", restrict the lexical score to the Band 6 level.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The writing includes a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, such as introductory subordinate clauses ("At the beginning of the period, the number of..."). However, grammatical errors are frequent enough to cause some strain. Examples include dangling or awkward phrases ("with reaching a peak"), missing relative pronouns ("the number of tourists visited"), and numerical formatting issues. While basic meaning is generally communicated, the frequency of grammatical and mechanical slips keeps this criterion at a Band 5.5.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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