Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Momentum Workout · 2026-08-28

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The line graph below shows past and current overweight rates, as well as a projected future overweight rate in nine selected countries.

Summarise the infonnation by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

Past and projected future overweight rates in selected OECD countries

Student answer (Band 5.5)

The line graph provides information about the past and current overweight rates, as well as a projected future overweight rate in nine selected countries from 1970 to 2020.

Overall, a rising trend was observed in the USA, but before it was increasing it fell a bit while Austria able to maintained their proportion in early period and then rose.

In terms of USA, it was at 45% at 1970 and fell at 40% in 1980 and then it rose drastically to its peak at 75% in 2020 and recorded the highest proportion among all nine countries.

In contract of other countries, they all experienced a rise in proportion through out the time period, although many of them had mixed percentage with Austria being the most balanced across each countries.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0

The response fails to meet the minimum word count requirement of 150 words, which significantly impacts the task achievement score. While you have identified the main trend for the USA, the analysis of the other eight countries is extremely vague. You mention that they 'experienced a rise' but fail to provide specific data points or meaningful comparisons between the countries, which is essential for an Academic Task 1 response. To improve, you must describe the key features of the data more comprehensively, including specific figures for the start, end, and any notable fluctuations for the other countries, rather than grouping them together in a single, underdeveloped paragraph.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organised into paragraphs, but the logical progression is weak. The transition between the introduction and the body paragraphs is abrupt. While you use some cohesive devices like 'Overall' and 'In terms of', the connection between sentences is often mechanical. The final paragraph is particularly problematic as it attempts to summarise the remaining countries without clear structure or logical flow. To improve, ensure each paragraph has a clear focus and use a wider variety of linking words to connect your ideas more fluidly, ensuring that the relationship between the data points is clearly explained to the reader.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is somewhat limited and repetitive. You rely on basic verbs like 'fell', 'rose', and 'increased'. There are also some awkward collocations and phrasing, such as 'in contract of other countries' (which should be 'in contrast to') and 'mixed percentage'. To reach a higher band, you should incorporate a more varied range of vocabulary to describe trends, such as 'fluctuated', 'peaked at', 'remained stable', or 'a significant upward trajectory'. Additionally, ensure you use precise terminology when referring to data, such as 'proportion' or 'percentage', consistently throughout the text.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

There are several grammatical errors that occasionally impede the clarity of your writing. For example, 'Austria able to maintained' is grammatically incorrect; it should be 'Austria was able to maintain'. You also have issues with prepositions and tense consistency, such as 'at 1970' (should be 'in 1970') and 'fell at 40%' (should be 'fell to 40%'). While you attempt some complex structures, they are often marred by these errors. Focusing on basic sentence construction and ensuring subject-verb agreement will help improve your accuracy. Try to proofread your work to catch these common errors before submitting.

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

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