Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-08-29

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 5.5)

The bar chart illustrates the export earnings from five different goods, measured in billionns of dollars, in one country in 1015 and 2016, while the accompanying table shows the proportions change in values during same period.

Overall, while petroleum products and engineered goods worth the most, agricultural products and textiles made up the least earning. In addition, the percentages of all products witneesed an increase in values except for gems and jewellery, with exported textiles experiencing the highest growth by 2016 compared with 2015.

the petroleum products and engineered goods contributed accounted for the majority of export earnings in both years. In 2015, the worth of petroleum was around $60 billion and engineered goods about $65 billion, but by 2016, both had increases to approximately $62 billion and $60 billion respectively. Gems and jewellery comprised about $50 billion in both years, which was less than previous items and only in this category the exported value decreased by 2016, followed by agricultural products, earning nearly equal value at roughly $42 billion. Finally, textiles accounted for the least contributor at around $35 billion in 2015 and about $42 billion in 2016.

Reading the percentage change in the same period, all products registered growth in percentage expect germ and jewellery were it values dropped. The first-largest increased recorded in texitles at 15.24%, followed by enigineered goods, petroleum and agricultural at 8.5%, 3% and 0.81% respectively. By contrast, germ and jewellery percentage had fallen at 5.18% by 2016.

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. You included relevant comparisons between the two years and correctly highlighted the growth trends. However, there are some inaccuracies in your reporting of the data. For instance, you stated that engineered goods increased to $60 billion, whereas the data indicates a decrease from $65 billion to $60 billion. Additionally, you mentioned that petroleum products increased to $62 billion, but the data shows a decrease from $60 billion to $52 billion. Ensuring data accuracy is crucial for a higher score in this criterion.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The response is logically organized into an introduction, an overview, and two body paragraphs. You use cohesive devices such as 'In addition', 'Finally', and 'By contrast' to link ideas. However, the flow is occasionally hindered by mechanical errors and some awkward phrasing, such as 'only in this category the exported value decreased'. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate the general trends from the specific data points, which helps the reader follow your argument. To improve, focus on using a wider variety of cohesive devices and ensuring that your referencing is always clear and grammatically sound.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'illustrates', 'export earnings', and 'proportions'. However, there are several spelling errors, such as 'billionns', 'witneesed', 'germ', and 'texitles', which detract from the professional tone. Furthermore, some word choices are slightly unnatural, such as 'the first-largest increased recorded'. While these errors do not prevent the reader from understanding your meaning, they indicate a need for more careful proofreading and a broader range of precise, error-free vocabulary to reach a higher band score.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

You attempt a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, which is good. However, there are frequent grammatical errors throughout the text, such as 'proportions change in values during same period' (missing article), 'both had increases' (incorrect verb form), and 'where it values dropped' (incorrect pronoun usage). These errors are noticeable and occur frequently, though they rarely impede communication. To improve, focus on subject-verb agreement and the correct use of articles and prepositions. Reviewing your work for these common slips will significantly enhance the accuracy of your writing.

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

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