Band 4.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 4.0 · IELTS Complete Catalyst · 2026-09-25

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 4.0)

The chart gives information about the Britain came top in survey staff. First of all we can look out of firt five best companies

1.) The staff numbers :- first is 56 , second is 79,third position is 72 , fourth position is 76, and fifth position is 190.

2.) Male:Female ratio:- 30:70 is the first position,47:53 is the second position 74:26 is the third position13:87 is the fourth position and 51:49 is the fifth position.

3.) Under 35/ over 55 s :- 77,%10%is the first position 59% 1% is the second position 82% is the third position 26% 18% is the fourth position and 93% 1% is the fifth position

4.) Staff turnover :- 5%is the first position 18% is the second position 8% is the third position 13% is the fourth position and 33% is the fifth position.

5.) Staff is high income bracket :- 34%is the first position,48% is the second position, 74% is the third position, 5% is the fourth position,and 2% is the fifth position.

The all over the percent about different things.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.0

The response attempts to summarise the provided table data, but it falls significantly short of standard Academic Task 1 expectations. Instead of presenting a cohesive summary with an overview and well-selected comparisons, the student uses a heavily fragmented, bullet-point list structure. Crucially, the data points are copied directly one by one without any genuine analysis, grouping, or synthesis of the main trends. Furthermore, there are several factual inaccuracies when transcribing the data from the visual prompt; for instance, under the 'under 35s / over 55s' category, the student writes '77,%10%is the first position', which completely misreads the 77% / 0% figure shown in the table. Because the response lacks a proper overview and fails to adequately select and report main features, it meets the descriptors for Band 4.0.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.0

Coherence and cohesion are severely compromised in this response. Rather than employing standard paragraphing with logical progression, the writer structures the text as a numbered list resembling raw notes. Discourse markers are largely absent, except for a weak introductory sentence ('First of all we can look out of firt five best companies'). There is no clear overall progression or logical sequencing connecting the different categories of data. Transitional devices between sentences and points are missing, leading to an extremely disjointed reading experience. The concluding sentence ('The all over the percent about different things.') is grammatically broken and fails to function as a coherent summary. This performance aligns with Band 4.0 descriptors.

Lexical Resource: Band 4.0

The lexical range is extremely basic and repetitive. The student relies almost entirely on numbers, symbols, and high-frequency functional words (e.g., 'first position', 'second position', 'staff numbers'). There is virtually no attempt to use less common vocabulary or paraphrase the data headings provided in the table. Word choice errors and awkward phrasing are frequent, such as 'The chart gives information about the Britain came top in survey staff' and 'Staff is high income bracket'. Spelling errors also occur, such as 'firt'. Because the vocabulary is extremely limited and repetitive, constraining communication to simple lists of figures, the response merits a Band 4.0 for Lexical Resource.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 4.0

The grammatical range is extremely restricted. The response contains almost no complex sentence structures; instead, it consists of fragmented clauses and list items connected by punctuation errors. There are frequent grammatical errors, missing prepositions, and poor sentence boundaries, such as '30:70 is the first position,47:53 is the second position 74:26 is the third position13:87 is the fourth position and 51:49 is the fifth position.' The lack of verb control and punctuation makes many sentences ungrammatical and difficult to parse. Error-free sentences are extremely rare. This level of grammatical control corresponds to a Band 4.0.

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