Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-10-02
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 value of a country's exports in different sections from 2015 to 2016. The table provides how the percentage change in each section in 2016 compared with 2015.
Overall, the price of petroleum products higher in both years. Furthermore, the price of petroleum products, engineering goods, agricultural and textile things increased in 2016 compared to 2015. But the value of gems and jwellery went down with the time.
In 2015 and 2016, the price of petroleum and engineering products were relatively high. It was more than 60 billions. Although, the value of agricultural and textiles were lower, it showed slight improvement with the time. Both of them had below 50 billions value.
Compared to 2015, the value of all the products were went up in 2016 except gems and jwellary. It reduces from 5.18 percentage. The textile products increased with higher percentage. It was 15.24%. The engineering produts had second higher improvement. The agricultural products had the lowest increament, which showed as 0.81%.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 6.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0
The response successfully addresses all parts of the task by providing an overview and selecting key features from both the bar chart and the table. The main trends are identified, such as petroleum products and engineering goods starting high and increasing, and textiles seeing significant growth. However, some ideas are under-developed or imprecise; for instance, referring to export earnings as 'the price' is inaccurate, and descriptions like 'below 50 billions' lump categories together rather than clearly contrasting their individual values. To reach a higher level, the response needs to provide a more thorough and precise selection of data points, avoiding generalisations and ensuring every reported figure precisely matches the visual source without blurring categories.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5
The response demonstrates a coherent overall arrangement, with a clear division into an introduction, an overview paragraph, and body paragraphs discussing specific trends and percentages. Information and ideas are generally organized logically. However, cohesion is sometimes faulty or mechanical. For example, transitional phrases like 'with the time' are awkward and repetitive, and referencing is not always clear when discussing groupings of products. To achieve a higher band, the writer needs to employ a wider and more flexible range of cohesive devices without repetition, ensuring seamless transitions between sentences and paragraphs that maintain a clear progression throughout.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.0
The response uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, attempting less common terms such as 'percentage change', 'improvement', and 'decrease'. However, there are noticeable lexical inaccuracies and spelling errors, such as 'jwellery', 'jwellary', 'increament', and 'produts'. The overuse of basic words like 'price' instead of 'value' or 'earnings' restricts precision. Furthermore, collocations are sometimes weak, such as 'went up' used excessively or awkward phrases like 'textile things'. To improve, the writer must expand their lexical range, eliminate spelling mistakes, and apply vocabulary with greater precision and stylistic awareness appropriate for an academic report.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0
The response uses a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating some control over basic structures. There are, however, frequent grammatical errors that occasionally impede smooth reading, such as verb tense and form issues ('the value of all the products were went up', 'It reduces from 5.18 percentage'), missing prepositions, and faulty article usage ('the percentage change in each section in 2016 compared with 2015' missing a verb). Complex sentence attempts often contain structural flaws. To move up to the next band, the writer needs to produce a greater proportion of error-free sentences, improve command over verb patterns and agreements, and refine structural accuracy in complex clauses.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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