Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-08-09

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

below shows the value of one country’s exports in various categories during 2015 and 2016. The table shows the percentage change in each category of exports in 2016 compared with 2015.

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

Student answer (Band 6.0)

This country's export earnings are grouped into a number of divisions, such as petroleum products, Engineered goods, Gems and jewelry, agricultural products, and textiles, in 2016 compared with the previous year. In 2015, petroleum products came up to 6.5 billion dollars, while they grew by a small amount in 2016. As for the engineered products, they made 6 billion dollars in 2015 and grew by around 0.3 billion dollars in the following year. Gems and jewelry also had a very close difference, which was around 50.2 billion dollars for 2015 and 50 billion dollars for 2016, indicating a slightly decreasing rate. Agricultural products relatively showed that their difference across these consecutive years is the closest of all, only increasing by 0.1 billion dollars, with 2015's data approximately 40.1 billion dollars. For the final category, Textiles showed 30.5 billion dollars, and for 2016 it increased to 40.1 billion dollars, showing a significant change. To conclude, the percentage of change in values in the given two years showed major growth and diminishing rates as compared afterwards. Petroleum products increased by 3%, Engineered goods by 8.5%, Gems and jewelry by 5.18%, Agricultural products by 0.81%, and textiles by 15.24%. Showing that textile wins the highest growth rate, making Agricultural products the lowest, leaving Gems and jewelry the only decreasing rate.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

You have successfully identified the main features of the data and provided a clear overview of the trends. You included specific figures for both 2015 and 2016, which is essential for a high-scoring response. However, there are some inaccuracies in your data reporting; for instance, you stated that Gems and Jewelry decreased, but the table shows a positive percentage change. Additionally, your summary of the percentage changes at the end is a bit repetitive, as you essentially list the data again. To improve, focus on grouping the categories by their trends (e.g., those that grew significantly versus those that remained stable) rather than listing them one by one.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The response is logically organized, with a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and a concluding summary. You use some cohesive devices like 'As for' and 'For the final category' to transition between ideas. However, the flow between sentences can feel a bit mechanical. The concluding paragraph is slightly disjointed from the body, as it repeats information rather than synthesizing it. To reach a higher band, try to use a wider variety of linking words and ensure that your paragraphing reflects a clear thematic grouping of the data rather than just following the order of the table.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'divisions', 'consecutive years', and 'diminishing rates'. There are some minor issues with word choice, such as 'textile wins the highest growth rate', which is not standard academic phrasing. You also rely on repetitive structures when describing the data. To improve, try to incorporate more precise verbs and adjectives to describe trends, such as 'surged', 'fluctuated', or 'marginal increase', and ensure that your terminology for data trends is accurate and varied.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, which is appropriate for this task. Most of your sentences are clear and easy to follow. However, there are some grammatical slips, such as 'Agricultural products relatively showed that their difference... is the closest', which is slightly awkward. You also have some minor punctuation and phrasing issues, like 'showing a significant change. To conclude, the percentage of change...'. While these errors do not impede communication, they prevent the response from reaching a higher band. Focus on ensuring subject-verb agreement and refining your sentence structure for better flow.

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

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