Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Academic Practice Accelerator · 2026-10-01

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 graph illutrates, the number of first time visitors and returning visitors, who visited Caryl Island, between the timeline of 2000 and 2008.

Firstly, if we discuss about the first time visitors, it suggests that during the year 2000, a total of 8,000 people visited Caryl Island. However, these numbers fluctuated and declined to 4,000 in 2002. Fortunately the number of visitors started to gradually increase, during 2004 and 2006, eventually these numbers topped at 12,000 in 2008.

While at the other hand, the red line indicates the number of returning visitors. In year 2000, the ratio of returning visitors was at the bottom, reaching nearly 3000. In contrast to that, the numbers saw a massive increase until 2000. Following that the ratio suffered, some ups and downs, suprisingly it reached upto 15,000 in 2006, but in after 2006, a significant decline was observed in the number of returning visitors till 2008.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.5

The response attempts to cover the main trends in the line graph, but it suffers from significant inaccuracies in reporting the data and misses key comparative features. For example, the student incorrectly states that first-time visitors 'topped at 12,000 in 2008' when the graph shows approximately 11,800, and states that returning visitors reached 15,000 in 2006 (actually around 15,200), whilst misinterpreting the timeline elsewhere by writing 'until 2000' instead of 2002. Furthermore, the overview is entirely missing from the introduction, and the data is presented with a mechanical focus on individual years rather than identifying overall trends or making meaningful comparisons between the two categories. These reporting errors and the lack of a clear summary place the response at this level, as the task is only partially addressed.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response is arranged into paragraphs, and there is a clear attempt to structure the information logically by separating the two visitor types into distinct sections. Cohesive devices such as 'Firstly', 'However', and 'In contrast to that' are used to connect ideas, though some are slightly unnatural or clunky in context, like 'While at the other hand'. Referencing is generally understandable, although punctuation errors around commas occasionally disrupt the natural flow of sentences. Paragraphing is present, but the overall progression could be enhanced with a dedicated overview paragraph. These features demonstrate a coherent overall arrangement typical of this level, where cohesion is functional but sometimes mechanical or faulty.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary to describe upward and downward movements, such as 'fluctuated', 'declined', 'gradually increase', and 'massive increase'. However, there are noticeable lexical inaccuracies, awkward phrasing, and spelling errors that affect precision, such as 'illutrates' (illustrates), 'ratio' used incorrectly to mean number or level, and 'suprisingly' (surprisingly). Phrases like 'topped at' and 'suffered some ups and downs' show an attempt to use less common vocabulary, but collocation is sometimes unidiomatic. These vocabulary choices are sufficient to communicate the general meaning, but the presence of frequent word-choice errors and spelling slips keeps the response at this tier.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The writing displays a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating an ability to use subordinate clauses and temporal markers. However, there are frequent errors in grammar and punctuation, particularly with intrusive commas that interrupt the flow of basic clauses, as seen in 'The graph illutrates, the number of first time visitors...' and 'Fortunately the number of visitors...'. Other minor tense and preposition slips occur, such as 'in after 2006'. While these errors do not completely obscure the intended meaning, they recur often enough to cause some difficulty for the reader and prevent the response from achieving higher grammatical control.

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