Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-09-16
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 graph illustrates the information about the export earnings in different products such as petroleum, engineered goods, gems and jewellery, agricultural and textiles in 2015 and 2016 and the table describes the data about percentage change in values.
Overall, it can be seen that the earnings of petroleum products increased significantly throughout the period and the textiles recorded the lowest figure. It is also be noticed that engineered goods came to the second. While the table showed that textiles accounted for the highest percentage and gems and jewwllery faced a decline trend, whereas al the other categories were showed an upward growth.
In 2015, petroleum products recorded 60 billions of income and showed an upward gowth of selling at approximately 62 billions in 2016 makinf it the highest category. While the earnings of engineered goods accounted for around 58 billions in 2015 and increased to 61 billions in 2016. Gems and jewellery earnings recorded around 42 billions in 2015 whereas decreased to 40 billions in 2016
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The student covers all parts of the task by reporting on both the bar graph (export earnings for five categories in 2015 and 2016) and the table (percentage change). A clear overview is provided in the second paragraph, highlighting key trends such as the significant increase in petroleum products and the downward trend in gems and jewellery. Main features are selected and compared, and specific data figures are cited, such as 'petroleum products recorded 60 billions of income'. However, the response misses the agricultural products and textiles data in the body paragraphs, leaving some parts of the visual data under-reported. Overall, the task is addressed adequately, satisfying the requirements for a Band 6.0.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The response has a coherent overall arrangement with a clear introduction, overview, and body paragraphs. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate the introduction/overview from the body details. Cohesive devices are employed to connect ideas, such as 'Overall, it can be seen that' and 'While the table showed'. However, referencing and progression are occasionally faulty, as seen in awkward transitions like 'It is also be noticed that engineered goods came to the second' and some disjointed sentence structures in the overview. Paragraphing is adequate, but logical flow between sentences could be smoother to reach a higher band.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The student demonstrates an adequate vocabulary range for the task, successfully using terms related to data reporting such as 'export earnings', 'percentage change', 'increased significantly', and 'decline trend'. However, there are notable lexical errors and misspellings, including 'jewwllery', 'gowth', and 'makinf'. Additionally, phraseology is sometimes unnatural, such as 'earnings of petroleum products... showed an upward gowth of selling at approximately 62 billions'. While less common vocabulary is attempted, errors in word choice and spelling prevent the response from achieving a higher band score.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, utilizing subordinating conjunctions like 'While' and 'whereas'. However, grammatical accuracy is inconsistent. There are several structural and verb form errors throughout the text, such as 'It is also be noticed that', 'al the other categories were showed an upward growth', and missing articles or preposition issues like '60 billions of income'. Punctuation and basic grammar errors occur frequently, though they rarely impede overall communication. The frequency of these non-systematic errors places this response firmly in Band 5.5.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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