Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Momentum Workout · 2026-10-19

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 graph displays the information about the past overweight rates in selected OECD countries. Overall, all the given countries experienced an increase in the overweight percentages. While, USA and England remained the top two countries throughout the given period, Australia showed a significant rise in overweight rates.

In 1970, the proportion of obese people was around 45% which increased gradually with a small dip and reached over 70% in 2020. On the other hand, England and Canada made up around 45% in 1990s and had a fluctuated growth of approximately 70% and 55%, respectively.

The rate of obesity in Spain was above 40% in 1985 which rose by around 10% in 2020. In 1983, Austria had an obese population just below 40% which remained somewhat stable until 2005, then went up to about 45% by 2020 with a small dip of approximately 2-3% in 2008.

Both Italy and France showed a growth from about 30% and 35% to just below 45%. Korea had the least number of obese people with around 25% in 1995 to about 35% in 2020. Australia was the only country which experienced a drastic increase in obesity and reached about 65% in 2020 from just 35% in 1990.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

You provide an overview and select several relevant countries, including the USA’s rise, Australia’s marked increase and Korea’s comparatively low rate. However, the overview is not fully accurate: the USA and England are not the top two throughout, since the USA is the only country shown in the 1970s and England’s series begins in the 1990s. The claim that all countries increased is broadly supported, but the response gives limited comparison of the overall ranking and changes. Some details are also imprecise: Australia rises from about 34% to 64%, rather than 35% to 65%, and Austria’s later figure is around 46–47%. A clearer overview and more carefully selected, accurate comparisons would strengthen coverage.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a clear overall shape: an introduction and overview are followed by paragraphs describing groups of countries. This makes the information reasonably easy to follow, and phrases such as “On the other hand” and “Both Italy and France” help connect points. However, the progression is sometimes list-like, with countries introduced one after another rather than grouped through clear comparisons. The sentence beginning “On the other hand” combines England and Canada without explaining how their trends differ, and “While, USA and England…” uses a connector awkwardly. Organise the body around meaningful groups—for example, the highest rates, middle range and lowest rates—and use references that make each comparison explicit.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of vocabulary for describing trends, including “increased gradually,” “significant rise,” “remained somewhat stable” and “drastic increase.” These choices communicate the main patterns, and the repeated use of “rate” and “proportion” is generally appropriate. Some wording is imprecise or repetitive, however. “Made up around 45%” is not a natural way to describe a rate, while “number of obese people” suggests a count rather than a percentage. “Fluctuated growth” is also an awkward collocation, and “obese population” is less precise than language referring to the proportion overweight. Aim for accurate, varied trend vocabulary and use terms that match the graph’s measure.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and more complex sentence forms, including a contrast clause with “While” and a sentence describing a change over time. Most meanings remain clear, but some grammatical and punctuation errors are present. In “While, USA and England remained…,” the comma after “While” is misplaced, and the sentence is not well formed as written. “In 1970, the proportion … was around 45% which increased…” needs clearer clause punctuation or restructuring, since it is the proportion that increased. There are also article and phrasing issues in “USA” and “in 1990s.” Check sentence boundaries and clause links, and use consistent past forms when reporting historical data; these refinements would make the otherwise understandable account more controlled.

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

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.