Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · IELTS Summit Mastery · 2026-08-08

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The graphs below show the percentage of people holding full driving licences in Great Britain by age and sex.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

Full car driving licence holders: by sex and age

Student answer (Band 6.5)

The illustration given displays information about the holders of a driving licence, categorised by age and gender. Overall, a general trend can be seen across both genders: most driving licence holders are middle aged, with greater dominance in the male sector.

For both men and women, the category holding the fewest licenses would be those across the ages of 17-20. However, a greater number of licenses was held by men as opposed to women, at nearly 40% in 2006. A positive trend is seen as age increases, and during people's early-to-late twenties, both men and women in 2006 possess nearly the same number of licences, surpassing the 60% mark. A similar observation is made for people in their thirties, regardless of gender, with 80% of men holding a licence. A peak is seen for women in their forties as they barely miss the 80% mark in 2006, whereas over 80% of men continue to carry a license. These numbers see a recession across the years with women as they hit 60 years old and the percentage of women holding a license at 70 falls to about 30%. In 1975, however, percentages were significantly lower and fewer women held licenses.

Furthermore, the greatest peak is seen with men in 2006 as they hit their fifties and nearly 90% have a license in their possession. These numbers then fall when they reach the ripe age of 70, finally falling below 80%. In 1975-76, a smaller percentage of men carried licences, but there were still more male licence carriers over women ones as numbers never fell below 20% even during old age.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The response covers the main features of the data well, identifying trends across age groups and genders. You successfully highlight the peak periods for licence holders and contrast the 1975 and 2006 data. However, the report could be improved by more precise data referencing. For instance, stating 'nearly 40%' or 'barely miss the 80% mark' is slightly vague when the graph provides specific data points. To reach a higher band, ensure that comparisons are more direct and that the distinction between the two years is consistently clear throughout the analysis.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The essay is logically organized with a clear introduction and body paragraphs that follow a thematic progression. Cohesive devices such as 'However', 'Furthermore', and 'whereas' are used effectively to link ideas. Paragraphing is appropriate, with each section focusing on a distinct aspect of the data. The flow of information is generally smooth, though some transitions between the 1975 and 2006 data points could be more seamless to avoid minor jumps in the narrative. Overall, the structure supports the reader's understanding of the trends.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You demonstrate a sufficient range of vocabulary to convey the information accurately, using terms like 'recession', 'categorised', and 'dominance'. There are some minor issues with collocation, such as 'male sector' or 'women ones', which sound slightly unnatural. While the vocabulary is adequate for the task and allows for some precision, incorporating more sophisticated academic collocations related to data description (e.g., 'a significant disparity', 'a downward trajectory') would enhance the lexical quality and help you achieve a higher score.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The response uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures with generally good control. There are occasional grammatical slips, such as 'women ones' and 'these numbers see a recession across the years with women', which slightly affect the precision of your expression. Punctuation is generally accurate, and the errors present do not impede communication. To improve, focus on refining subject-verb agreement and ensuring that complex sentences are constructed with greater grammatical precision to minimize these occasional inaccuracies.

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

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