Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · IELTS Complete Catalyst · 2026-09-11

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:

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

Student answer (Band 5.0)

The given two pie chart represents the reasons why people in Britain learn a foreign language and the proportion of teachers who reported a recent increase in learners for each reason.

To commence with, it is noticeable that first of all 33% of teachers reported travel as the main reason, and on the other hand 3% increase in people. Moreover, the largest teachers reported in business/work at 26% and after that decrease at 19%. However, buying property overseas most common reason at 19% and later on increase at 34%. Post hoc, the general interest the most common reason st 5% and increase at 6%. Finally, the social contacts and personal development teachers reported at 7% in both and other side increase in social contacts at 15% and less than 4% in personal development. Eventually, the lowest teachers reporting in foreign partner at 3% and increase in 4%.

Overall, it becomes apparent that travel was the most common reason for a learning foreign langauge, while buying property overseas was the main reason showing a recent the increase.

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response5.0
Coherence and Cohesion5.0
Lexical Resource5.0
Grammatical Range and Accuracy5.0
Overall5.0

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0

The response addresses the task by describing the two pie charts. However, the presentation of data is problematic. The report lists figures in a disjointed manner, often failing to clearly distinguish between the 'main reason' and the 'recent change' categories. For instance, phrases like '3% increase in people' are vague and do not accurately reflect the data provided in the charts. While the overview identifies the most common reason and the largest increase, the body paragraphs lack a logical grouping of data, making it difficult for the reader to follow the trends. To improve, you should group related data points and use more precise language to describe the changes observed.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0

The essay is organised into an introduction, body, and conclusion, which is a good start. However, the internal cohesion is weak. The use of cohesive devices is often mechanical or misused, such as 'Post hoc' and 'Eventually', which do not fit the context of a data report. The progression of ideas within the second paragraph is confusing, as the transition between different categories is abrupt. The referencing is also unclear at times, making it difficult to determine which data point refers to which category. Improving the use of linking words and ensuring a smoother flow between sentences would significantly enhance the coherence of your writing.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

The vocabulary is somewhat limited and repetitive. You rely heavily on basic structures like 'reported', 'increase', and 'reason'. There are also issues with word choice and collocation, such as 'the largest teachers reported in business/work' and 'other side increase in social contacts'. These errors occasionally make the meaning unclear. To reach a higher band, you should aim to use a wider range of vocabulary to describe trends, such as 'accounted for', 'witnessed a rise', or 'experienced a decline', and ensure that your word choices are appropriate for a formal report.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The response contains a mix of simple and some attempted complex structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors throughout. Issues include missing articles ('the given two pie chart'), incorrect verb forms ('the largest teachers reported'), and awkward sentence construction ('the lowest teachers reporting in foreign partner'). Punctuation is generally acceptable, but the grammatical inaccuracies are persistent and sometimes impede the flow of information. To improve, focus on subject-verb agreement, correct article usage, and ensuring that your sentences are grammatically complete and logically structured.

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

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