Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-10-18

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)

This bar chart illustrates the earnings from a country's export in five different categories in 2015 and 2016, while the accompanying information shows the percentage change in export values in 2016 compared with 2015.

Overall, petroleum products generated the highest export earning in obth years, whereas the textiles had the lowest figures in 2015. most export categories experienced growth in 2016, with the expection of gems and jewellery, which recorded a decline.

Looking at bar chart in detail, petroleum products earned approximately $60 billionin 2015,and this figure increased to arounfd 62 billion in 2016. similarly, earnings from engineered goods rose considerablyfrom appproximately from $58 billion to %62 billion in 2016. in contrast, the value og gems and jewellery exports decreasesd slightly from about $43 billion to $41 billion.

Regarding the remaining categories, agrricultural products experienced a marginal increase , rising from approximately$31 billion in 2015 to $32 billion in 2015. meanwhile, textilesdhowed a significant improvement , increasing from around $25 billion to $30 billion.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the main pattern that petroleum products earned the most and that gems and jewellery declined, and you cover all five categories with relevant comparisons. However, the overview is incomplete: textiles, not just gems, are important because they had the largest percentage increase, while agricultural exports were almost unchanged. Some figures and trends are also inaccurate. Engineered goods rose from about $57 billion to $62 billion, rather than from $58 billion to $62 billion “considerably”; agricultural products were approximately $31 billion in both years, not $31 billion to $32 billion, and the second year should be 2016. The response therefore reports relevant information but does not consistently select and describe it accurately or fully.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a clear overall arrangement: an introduction, an overview, and two paragraphs grouping the detailed comparisons. This makes the information reasonably easy to follow, and phrases such as “in contrast” and “Regarding the remaining categories” help signal shifts. However, progression is weakened by inconsistent sentence openings and punctuation, including “similarly” and “in contrast” beginning with lowercase letters. The overview also says most categories grew but does not clearly distinguish the near-stability of agriculture from the substantial textile rise. More precise linking and a clearer grouping of the largest values, decline, and strongest growth would make the organisation more effective.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use a relevant range of task vocabulary, including “export earnings,” “percentage change,” “generated,” “decline,” and “marginal increase.” These choices generally communicate the comparisons. However, spelling and word-form errors are frequent enough to be noticeable, for example “obth,” “expection,” “arounfd,” “appproximately,” and “decreasesd.” Some expressions are also awkward or imprecise: “the textiles had the lowest figures” would be clearer as “textiles recorded the lowest earnings,” and “rose considerably” overstates the relatively modest increase in engineered goods. Aim for accurate spelling and more precise collocations so that the vocabulary supports, rather than distracts from, the data description.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mix of sentence forms, including a complex introduction with “while” and comparisons using “whereas” and “which.” The main relationships between categories are usually understandable. However, errors in sentence boundaries, tense, articles, and punctuation reduce accuracy. For example, “in 2016” should be used in the agricultural comparison rather than repeating “in 2015,” and “the textiles” is not the natural article choice here. Several sentences also run together through missing spaces after punctuation, while “the value … exports decreasesd” has an incorrect verb form. Check sentence starts, past-tense consistency, and punctuation, then proofread for grammatical patterns as well as spelling.

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