Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Complete Catalyst · 2026-08-24

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The pie charts below show responses by teachers of foreign languages in Britain to a survey concerning why their students are learning a foreign language. The first chart shows the main reason for learning a foreign language. The second chart shows how many teachers felt that there has been a recent change in the reason.

Write a report for a university lecturer describing the information below.

% of teachers reporting the following as most common reason for learning:

Student answer (Band 5.5)

The information provided in the two pie charts generally compares a survey concerning why students are learning foreign language and the responses of their teachers regarding this concern.

Overall, the first chart illustrates the the main reason for learning a foreign language, whereas the most common reason is travel and business or work. While the second chart shows the recent changes felt by teachers, whereas the highest figure of changes experienced in property overseas sector.

In the first pie chart, about 26% of business or work is recorded the major reason of learning foreign language, while the largest portion of the pie chart consumed by travel, which is 33%. The third most highest figure is experienced of buying property overseas at 19%. And the rest of categories are maintain the same level of approximately 3 to 7 percent.

Turn to the second chart, the most significant change in the terms of increase occurred in the property overseas sector which is 34%. While business or work sector is gradually decline at 19%. Furthermore, a surprise substantial decrease is experience in the travel category which is drop from peak to down of 33% to only 3%. Moreover, the social contacts is the second most recent increase in the individuals learning, which is roughly 15%. Meanwhile the other sectors are fluctuated between 4 to 6 percent.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response covers all parts of the task and provides a clear overview of the main trends. You successfully identified the key features, such as the dominance of travel in the first chart and the significant shift toward property overseas in the second. However, the report contains some inaccuracies in data interpretation. For instance, you state that the travel category dropped from 33% to 3%, but the second chart actually shows the percentage of teachers who felt there was a change, not the percentage of students learning for that reason. Clarifying the distinction between the two charts would improve the accuracy of your analysis.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The response is logically organized into paragraphs, and there is a clear progression of ideas. You use some cohesive devices, such as 'Overall', 'In the first pie chart', and 'Furthermore', to guide the reader. However, the use of linking words is sometimes mechanical or grammatically incorrect, such as the repetitive use of 'whereas' in the introduction, which creates awkward phrasing. Additionally, some transitions between sentences feel slightly disjointed. Improving the variety and accuracy of your cohesive devices will help the flow of your writing.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'fluctuated', 'substantial', and 'sector'. However, there are several instances of awkward word choice and collocation errors, such as 'consumed by travel', 'the third most highest figure', and 'is recorded the major reason'. These errors occasionally impede the precision of your report. To reach a higher band, focus on using more precise collocations and avoiding repetitive or unnatural phrasing when describing statistical data.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The response uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors throughout. Examples include 'the the main reason', 'is gradually decline', 'is experience in the travel category', and 'the other sectors are fluctuated'. These errors, particularly with verb forms and passive voice constructions, are noticeable. While they do not prevent the reader from understanding the main points, they occur frequently enough to limit the score. Focusing on subject-verb agreement and consistent tense usage will significantly improve your accuracy.

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

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