Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Complete Catalyst · 2026-09-22
IELTS Writing Task 1 question
The charts below show the number of French adults whose parents spoke a French regional language to them when they were children and the number who speak a French regional language to their own children.
Write a report for a university lecturer describing the information below.
Number of adults (in thousands) whose parents spoke a regional language to them in childhood
Student answer (Band 5.5)
The charts compare the number of French adults whose parents spoke regional languages to them as children and the number who now speak these languages to their own children.
Overall, Occitan and Alsatian were the most common regional languages. However, Alsatian became the most widely spoken language to the next generation. Most languages were spoken less often by parents to their children.
As children, about 600 thousand adults heard Occitan regularly and around 1 million heard it occasionally. For Alsatian, the figures were while creole and Corsican were the least common.
When speaking to their own children, around 450 thousand adults used Alsatian, making it the most popular language. Occitan ranked second with about 300 thousand speakers. The figures for Breton, Creole, and Corsican were much lower, at around 100 thousand or less. Overall, regional languages became less common in the younger generation.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The response covers all parts of the task by comparing the two charts and highlighting key regional languages such as Occitan and Alsatian. An overall trend is identified, noting that regional languages became less common in the younger generation. However, there is a notable data omission and a sentence fragment in the third paragraph: 'For Alsatian, the figures were while creole and Corsican were the least common.' This leaves a crucial piece of data incomplete. Furthermore, the length requirement of 150 words was not met, as the response contains 143 words. Consequently, these issues prevent the response from achieving a higher band.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0
The response is organized logically with a clear introduction, an overview paragraph, and distinct body paragraphs discussing childhood exposure versus transmission to the next generation. Cohesive devices such as 'Overall', 'However', and 'When speaking to their own children' are used appropriately to guide the reader through the comparisons. Paragraphing is used sufficiently and effectively. However, the logical progression is slightly disrupted in the third paragraph due to an incomplete sentence regarding Alsatian, which impacts the flow of information.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The lexical range is generally adequate for the task, successfully incorporating terms related to data reporting and demographics, such as 'regional languages', 'habitually', 'occasionally', and 'generation'. Less common vocabulary is attempted with reasonable success, as seen in expressions like 'most widely spoken' and 'ranked second'. There are no major spelling or word-choice errors that impede communication, though the vocabulary remains somewhat standard rather than sophisticated or flexible.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The student demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, utilizing relative clauses and introductory prepositional phrases effectively (e.g., 'The charts compare the number of French adults whose parents spoke regional languages...'). There is good control over punctuation and basic structures. However, there is a significant grammatical breakdown in the third paragraph ('For Alsatian, the figures were while creole and Corsican were the least common'), which results in a fragmented and ungrammatical clause. Overall, error-free sentences are frequent, but this noticeable slip prevents a higher score.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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