Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Complete Catalyst · 2026-09-07

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The table below gives information about the five small companies in Britain that came top in a survey of staff conducted by a national newspaper to find out which companies are the best to work for.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

THE FIVE BEST SMALL COMPANIES TO WORK FOR

Student answer (Band 5.5)

The given table graph represent the five best small companies in Britain and survey of staff conducted to identify the best places to work. n

To commence with, it is noticeable that first of all the position in survey best work by staff members at 56 in 1st position and 190 in the fifth. Moreover, female employees accounted for 70% of staff in the first company and b87% in the fourth, while 74% third comopany had a male. However, employee under 35 made up 93% of the workforce in the fifth company, compared with only 26% in the fourth. Finally, the staff turnover was lowest in the first company, at 5%, but highest in the fifth, at 33%. Eventually, the third company had the greatest proportion of high income employee at 74%, while the fifth had only 2%.

Overall, it becomes apparent that first ranked company had the fewest employee, while the fifth ranked company was considerably larger. The fifth company also had the youngest workforce.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response covers the main features of the table, including staff numbers, gender distribution, age, turnover, and income. However, the presentation of data is occasionally confusing or inaccurate. For example, the statement that the 'first ranked company had the fewest employee' is not supported by the data, which shows the first company has 56 staff while the second has 45. Additionally, the phrasing '74% third comopany had a male' is unclear. While the main features are identified, the lack of precision in reporting the data and some misinterpretations of the figures prevent a higher score. The overview is present but could be more effectively integrated to highlight the most significant trends.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The response is organised into paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the structure. Cohesive devices such as 'To commence with', 'Moreover', 'However', and 'Finally' are used to link ideas. However, the flow is sometimes mechanical, and the referencing is occasionally unclear, such as the abrupt transition in the second paragraph. The logical progression is hindered by the way data points are listed without sufficient synthesis or comparison. While the paragraphing is functional, the internal cohesion within paragraphs could be improved to ensure a smoother reading experience.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The range of vocabulary is adequate for the task but lacks precision and sophistication. There are several errors in word choice and spelling, such as 'comopany' and 'employee' (used as a singular noun where plural is required). Phrases like 'position in survey best work' are awkward and do not accurately reflect the data. While the student attempts to use terms like 'proportion' and 'workforce', the overall control of vocabulary is limited, and the errors occasionally make the intended meaning slightly difficult to follow.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The response uses a mix of simple and some complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors. Issues include subject-verb agreement ('table graph represent'), missing articles ('in 1st position'), and awkward phrasing ('employee under 35 made up 93%'). Punctuation is generally acceptable, but the grammatical inaccuracies are persistent throughout the text. While these errors rarely impede communication entirely, they are frequent enough to lower the score. To improve, the student should focus on basic sentence construction and ensuring that nouns and verbs agree in number.

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