Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Complete Catalyst · 2026-10-20

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 first bar chart compare between the number of adults whose parents spoke a regional language to them habitually and occasionally in their childhood, whereas the second chart illustrates the number of parents who speak a regional language to their kids.

Overall it can be seen that majority of the people spoke Alsatian and Occitan by birth and Occitan was widely used as a second laguage. On the other hand, highest number of parents communiatce in Alsatian language to their children.

To begin with first chart, abot 600 thousands individuals used to speak in Alsatian and Occitan when they were children as a original language. In contrast, relative equal proportion spoke in Creole and Corsican which accountes for about 200 thousands and littile below 200 thousand, repectively. Subsequently, aproximately 400 thousands spoke in Breton. In contrast, about 1.2 m adults spoke Occaitan occationally. Other laguage were spoken by relatively small amount

In terms of parents, 400 thousands spoke in Aslatian to their kids. The highest spoken laguage was Occaitan, accounting for near 250 thousands. The lowest was Corsian which accounted for below 100 thousands.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify both charts and give an overview, noting the prominence of Alsatian and Occitan and that Alsatian leads in communication with children. However, the overview is partly inaccurate: Occitan, not Alsatian, has the highest habitual-and-occasional total, largely because occasional use is about 1.065 million. Some comparisons are also unclear or incorrect: Creole and Corsican together are not “about 200 thousands” each, and the chart shows Breton at about 260,000 habitual and 400,000 occasional. The second chart’s highest figure is Occitan at about 250,000, not Alsatian; Alsatian is about 400,000. Covering both charts is a strength, but select and report the key rankings and figures more accurately, and make the overview consistent with the data.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, an overview, and separate paragraphs for the two charts. This makes the general purpose easy to follow. However, progression within the first-chart paragraph is uneven: it moves from Alsatian and Occitan to Creole and Corsican, then Breton, and then returns to Occitan’s occasional figure. The repeated use of “In contrast” does not always signal a genuine contrast, and “Subsequently” is not suitable for presenting another category. The final phrase, “Other language were spoken by relatively small amount,” is incomplete and leaves the comparison unfinished. Grouping figures by habitual versus occasional use, then summarising the second chart, would create clearer progression and more effective cohesion.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use some task-relevant vocabulary, including “habitually,” “occasionally,” “accounting for,” and “proportion,” and you attempt to vary how figures are described. However, spelling errors are frequent and sometimes make the report less clear, for example “laguage,” “Occaitan,” “Aslatian,” and “Corsian.” Several word choices or collocations are also inaccurate: “as a original language” is not a natural way to describe childhood language use, and “communiate in … language” is awkward. “Highest spoken language” is unclear when you mean the largest number of parents speaking it to their children. Aim for accurate spelling of the language names and use precise reporting phrases such as “the number who spoke” or “the figure for.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt a mixture of simple and more complex sentences, including a comparison introduced by “whereas” and an overview beginning “Overall it can be seen.” However, errors occur across the response and sometimes make relationships between figures difficult to follow. For example, “The first bar chart compare” has subject–verb disagreement, while “600 thousands individuals” and “about 1.2 m adults spoke Occaitan occasionally” show problems with number expression and sentence construction. The phrase “Other language were spoken by relatively small amount” also has agreement and article/plural errors and is incomplete. Work on consistent singular/plural forms, articles, and complete sentence structures. Proofreading each sentence for a clear subject and verb would improve accuracy while preserving your attempts at complex sentences.

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

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