Band 7.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.5 · IELTS Complete Catalyst · 2026-09-23

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 7.5)

The two bar charts illustrate how many French adults, measured in thousands, were exposed to five regional languages by their parents during childhood (both habitually and occasionally), and how many of these adults go on to speak these languages to their own children.

Regarding language exposure in childhood, Occitan was the most prevalent, with approximately 650,000 adults having been spoken to habitually and just over 1 million occasionally, making it by far the most widely used regional language of the two categories. Alsatian followed a similar pattern, with around 600,000 adults exposed to it habitually, though only about 300,000 occasionally. Breton was spoken habitually to roughly 300,000 adults and occasionally to approximately 450,000, while Creole and Corsican were the least common in both categories, with figures remaining below 200,000 throughout.

In contrast, the number of adults who speak these regional languages to their own children is considerably lower across the board. Alsatian stands out as the most commonly passed-on language, with around 400,000 adults using it with their children, despite lower exposure figures in the occasional category during childhood. Occitan comes second, at approximately 230,000, representing a substantial decline compared to the figures seen in the previous generation. Breton, Creole, and Corsican are used by notably fewer adults, each falling below 120,000, continuing the downward trend observed across nearly all five languages.

Overall, Occitan was the regional language most commonly spoken to children in the past, particularly on an occasional basis, while Alsatian is the language most likely to be passed on to the current generation. In general, considerably fewer adults speak these regional languages to their own children than were exposed to them in childhood.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.5

The student covers all parts of the prompt well, accurately presenting data from both charts and providing clear comparisons between childhood exposure and adult transmission. The overview at the end effectively summarises the main trends without getting bogged down in excessive detail. Figures are cited accurately, such as noting Occitan had over 1 million occasional exposures and Alsatian was the most commonly passed-on language with around 400,000 speakers. The response is fully developed and directly answers the task instructions, aligning well with the Band 8 descriptor for Task Achievement.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.5

The report demonstrates a clear logical progression throughout. It opens with a well-paraphrased introduction, moves systematically through the childhood exposure data, contrasts this with the data on speaking to children, and finishes with a robust overview paragraph. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate distinct themes. Cohesive devices such as 'Regarding language exposure', 'In contrast', and 'Overall' are managed skilfully to guide the reader smoothly from one point to the next, satisfying the requirements for Band 8.

Lexical Resource: Band 7.0

The student employs a wide and flexible vocabulary range suited to an academic report. Words and phrases like 'prevalent', 'exposed', 'substantially lower', and 'downward trend' demonstrate a strong lexical command. There are only occasional minor inaccuracies or less-than-perfect collocations, but they do not impede communication. The use of varied phrasing to describe trends shows good flexibility, earning a solid Band 7.5, rounded to 7.5 or 7.0 based on standard band scoring.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 7.5

The writing features a wide variety of complex sentence structures used accurately. Subordinate clauses, participial phrases ('making it by far the most widely used'), and comparative structures are integrated smoothly. The majority of sentences are error-free, and control over grammar and punctuation is strong throughout. While minor slips could occur under tighter conditions, the control demonstrated here firmly places this response in the Band 8 category.

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

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