Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-10-27

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 proportion of exports in different sectors of country from 2015 and 2016.

Overall, it is clear that petroleum products and engineering goods hold the biggest portion in both years. While there was a dramatical rise in textile industry.

Petroleum products like Petrol, Desiel, Jet fuel etc play biggest role in exports of the country. It also increases 3% in 2016 as compared to 2015. On the other hand engineering goods has second biggest portion in exports and it also rises 8.5% significantly in 2016. Engineering goods climb up more than petroleum products.

Furthermore, exports of gems and jewellery products fall down 5.18% in 2016 as composed to 2015. While agricultural products grow up slightly in 2016 with 0.81%. Moreover there was dramatical rise in exports of textiles in 2016 accounted for 15.24%. This increase was higher than other industries.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the main categories and report the broad pattern that petroleum and engineered goods are the largest, while textiles show the strongest increase. You also include the percentage changes for all five categories, which gives the reader relevant comparisons. However, the response does not report the chart’s export values in billions, so the scale and relative size of the changes are not clearly demonstrated. Some descriptions are also inaccurate or unclear: engineered goods rose by 8.5%, but the chart’s approximate values show a smaller increase than petroleum products, not a larger one. The overview could more clearly note that gems and jewellery declined and agricultural exports were almost unchanged. The response is 143 words, below the required 150-word minimum; develop the overview and add key figures to meet the task fully.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a clear overall arrangement: an introduction, an overview, and two paragraphs covering the export categories. This makes the information reasonably easy to follow, and linking expressions such as “On the other hand” and “Furthermore” signal comparisons. However, some connections are mechanical or awkward, particularly the repeated use of “Moreover” and “While” to begin sentences that are not complete contrasts. The progression would be clearer if the categories were grouped by trend—for example, increases, then the decline and near-stability—and if each paragraph included the relevant values alongside the changes. The reference in “This increase” is understandable, but the overview’s “it” is vague. More precise linking and referencing would strengthen the flow.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use a relevant range of topic vocabulary, including “exports,” “sectors,” “portion,” “decline” (expressed as “fall down”), and “percentage,” so the subject is generally clear. There are also attempts at more descriptive language, such as “dramatically” and “significantly.” However, several word choices and collocations are inaccurate or unnatural: “proportion of exports” does not describe the chart’s dollar values, “hold the biggest portion” is awkward, and “grow up” and “fall down” are unsuitable for describing figures. “Desiel” is misspelled, and “Petrol, Diesel, Jet fuel etc” adds unsupported examples rather than summarising the data. Aim for precise chart language such as “export earnings,” “stood at,” “rose,” and “fell.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mix of simple and complex sentences, including a contrast with “While there was…” and comparisons using “as compared to.” Most of the intended meaning remains understandable, but some grammatical errors recur. The opening needs an article and a more accurate construction: “illustrates the value of exports … in 2015 and 2016.” Subject–verb agreement is inconsistent in “engineering goods has” and “it also increases”; use plural agreement or recast the subject. The sentence beginning “While there was a dramatical rise…” is a fragment, and “While agricultural products grow up slightly…” is also not a complete independent sentence. Tense shifts between past and present (“fall,” “grow,” “increases”) weaken accuracy. Use past-tense verbs consistently and connect dependent clauses to complete sentences.

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