Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Summit Mastery · 2026-09-05

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The graph below shows the perceived danger and actual likelihood of being a victim of crime.

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

Perceived and actual likelihood of being a victim of crime: by crime type

Student answer (Band 5.5)

The graph shows the comparison of perceived danger and actual likelihood of being a victim of crime between the years 2009/10 and 2010/11 across different types of crime.

Overall, car crime leads the charts for perceived danger and actual livelihood of being a victim to it in both time periods. Meanwhile, perception of danger for all the crimes increased subsequently. Actual risk of victimization percentage increased for all types of crime with the exception of car crime.

Perception of danger decreased for all types in the following years while car crime showing the biggest drop in it. Burglary and violent crime actual rate spiked by a couple of percent whereas both types mimicked a similar pattern of growth and decline. Although car crime showed a decrease in the actual risk but still remained the highest among all the other types both the years 2009/10 and 2010/11 marked at just below the 5% mark.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response covers the main features of the graph, identifying the trends for car crime, burglary, and violent crime. However, the analysis is somewhat confusing and inaccurate. For instance, you state that 'perception of danger decreased for all types,' which contradicts the data showing an increase in perceived danger for all categories between 2009/10 and 2010/11. Additionally, the description of the actual risk trends is difficult to follow and lacks precision. To improve, ensure you carefully cross-reference the data points with your written statements to avoid factual errors. The overview is present but lacks clarity due to the misinterpretation of the provided figures.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organised into paragraphs, which is a positive step. However, the logical progression is hindered by the factual inaccuracies mentioned above. Cohesive devices are used, such as 'Meanwhile' and 'Although,' but they are sometimes used in contexts that do not logically connect the ideas. The referencing is occasionally unclear, particularly when discussing the trends across the two time periods. To achieve a higher band, focus on ensuring that each sentence follows logically from the previous one and that transition words accurately reflect the relationship between the data points being compared.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The range of vocabulary is adequate for the task, with attempts at topic-specific language like 'victimization,' 'perceived danger,' and 'actual likelihood.' However, there are some awkward collocations and word choices, such as 'leads the charts' and 'actual livelihood' (which should be 'likelihood'). The phrase 'mimicked a similar pattern' is a good attempt at more sophisticated vocabulary. To improve, focus on using precise terminology and checking collocations to ensure your writing sounds natural and accurate in an academic context.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The response uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are several grammatical errors, such as 'car crime showing the biggest drop' (should be 'showed') and 'both the years 2009/10 and 2010/11 marked at' (which is syntactically awkward). Punctuation is generally functional, but the sentence structure often feels repetitive. To improve, work on subject-verb agreement and ensure that your complex sentences are constructed accurately without missing auxiliary verbs or prepositions.

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

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