Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

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

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)

This graph illustrates the perceived danger and actual likelihood of being a victim of crime.

They type of crimes given in the graph are burglary, car crime, and violent crime.

Initially, the first crime is burglary demonstrating the perceived as 15.5% in the years 2009/10, actual ones in 2009/10 are 2%. The perceived ones in 2010/11 are 13%, whereas the actual crimes occurred are 3% in the years 2010/11.

Secondly, the second one is the car crime demonstrating the perceived crimes as 21% in the years 2009/10, actual ones in 2009/10 are 4.8%. The perceived ones in 2010/11 are 17%, whereas the actual crimes occurred are 4.5% in the years 2010/11.

Lastly, the third one is the violent crime demonstrating the perceived crimes as 15.4% in the years 2009/10, actual ones in 2009/10 are 3.5%. The perceived ones in 2010/11 are 13.5%, whereas the actual crimes occurred are 3.7% in the years 2010/11.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0

The response addresses the task by identifying the main features of the graph. However, it lacks an overview or summary statement, which is a key requirement for Task 1. The report is essentially a list of data points rather than a synthesis of information. While the figures are accurate, the response fails to make meaningful comparisons or highlight significant trends, such as the consistent gap between perceived and actual danger. To improve, you should group the data more effectively and provide a clear opening summary of the main trends.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The response is organized into a series of sentences that follow the structure of the graph, but the progression is mechanical. Each paragraph starts with a transition word like 'Initially' or 'Secondly', which feels repetitive and forced. There is a lack of cohesive devices to link ideas within sentences, leading to a choppy flow. The paragraphing is also problematic; the entire body of the report is contained within a single block, which makes it difficult to follow. Using more varied linking phrases and better paragraph structure would improve the logical flow.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is somewhat repetitive, relying heavily on phrases like 'the perceived ones' and 'actual ones'. There is little attempt to use a range of vocabulary to describe trends or data. For example, instead of repeating 'demonstrating the perceived crimes', you could use verbs like 'recorded', 'registered', or 'were perceived to be'. The phrasing 'actual ones' is also quite informal and imprecise for an academic report. Expanding your range of reporting verbs and nouns related to statistics would help elevate the score.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The response relies on simple sentence structures, often repeating the same pattern: 'The [subject] is [value] in [year], [subject] is [value] in [year].' There are several grammatical errors, such as 'They type of crimes' (should be 'The types') and 'actual crimes occurred are' (should be 'actual crimes that occurred were'). Punctuation is generally functional, but the lack of complex sentence structures limits the range. To reach a higher band, you should incorporate more complex sentences using relative clauses or subordinating conjunctions to combine related data points.

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

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