Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Momentum Workout · 2026-09-27

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 compares the proportion of individuals with overweight in nine different countries-USA, England, Canada, Spain, Austria, Australia, Italy, France and Korea over the years from 1970 to 2020.

Overall, USA remained the dominated country throughtout the period with highest rates of overweight continuously increasing over the period while Korea showed the least overweight rates among the other countries in the same period.

In the year 1970, USA recorded the highest overweight rates with around 45%, dropping slightly to 42% by 1980 and showed steady rise over the years before peaking at approximately 75% by the year 2020. Likewise, England and Australia showed a similar trend over the period peaking at 70% and 65% respectively by the end of teh period.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

The student attempts to summarise the main features of the line graph, including an overview and specific data points for the USA, England, and Australia. However, the response is incomplete and terminates abruptly in the third paragraph. Furthermore, the length requirement of 150 words is not met, as the text contains only 122 words. There are also minor inaccuracies in the data reported, such as stating the USA dropped to 42% in 1980 when the grid shows around 43%, though these minor reading discrepancies are less damaging than the truncation and under-length penalty. Overall, the task is only partially addressed due to the missing data for the remaining countries and the severe length shortfall.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The essay is divided into an introduction, an overview paragraph, and the beginning of a body paragraph. There is a clear attempt to structure the response logically, using standard introductory phrases ('The line graph compares...') and a solid overview marker ('Overall,...'). Cohesive devices are employed reasonably well ('throughtout', 'while', 'In the year 1970', 'Likewise'). However, because the text is cut short mid-development, the overall progression is incomplete, and paragraphing is disrupted by the lack of a concluding body of data. Referencing is generally clear, but the structural truncation limits the band placement to a 5.5.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The student demonstrates an adequate vocabulary range suitable for describing trends and statistical data, using terms like 'proportion', 'overweight rates', 'peaking', and 'steady rise'. However, there are noticeable spelling and word choice errors, such as 'dominated' instead of 'dominant', 'throughtout' instead of 'throughout', and 'teh' instead of 'the'. Less common lexical items are attempted but lack precision. While the vocabulary is sufficient to convey the basic meaning, the lexical control contains recurring flaws that prevent it from reaching a higher band score.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, incorporating relative clauses and participial phrases (e.g., 'continuously increasing over the period while Korea showed...'). There are, however, several grammatical and mechanical errors throughout the text, including tense inconsistencies and awkward phrasing ('USA recorded the highest overweight rates with around 45%'). Punctuation is generally acceptable, but the frequency of slips in grammar and spelling keeps the control at a modest level. The majority of sentences are not error-free.

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