Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-11-11

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The graph below gives information about the number of jobs in four sectors of the economy in the US between 1960 and 2020.

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

Number of jobs in four sectors of the economy in the US, 1960-2020

Student answer (Band 5.5)

The line graph illustrates the information about jobs in the four sector of manufacturing, retail, agriculture and healthcare companies in US from 1960 to 2020.

Overall, it is clear that the highest number of jobs in US is manufacturing company meanwhile agriculture sector have lowest jobs throughout the year of period from 1960 to 2020.

On the one hand, the manufacturing sector have 15 millions in 1960 and it went up 20 millions in 1980 and eventually drops down in the year of 2000 and 2020 meanwhile retail sector increased steadily over the period from 5 to approxiemately 16 millions.

On the other hand if we talk about agriculture it starts from about 5 million and eventually drops down in 1980 and remain same till 2020 in contrast healthcare sector went uo from approxiematly 2 to 15 has a most notiable feature.

comparing the charts , it is clear that manufactuing company made up the largest jobs and agriculture has smallest figure.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the four sectors and give a broad account of their trends, including manufacturing’s rise to a peak and subsequent decline, retail’s growth, and agriculture’s fall. However, the overview is inaccurate: manufacturing was not the highest throughout, since retail and healthcare both reached about 16 million jobs by 2020, compared with manufacturing at 13 million. The agriculture description also says it remained unchanged until 2020, although it fell from about 3 million in 2000 to 2 million. Healthcare’s substantial rise is mentioned, but its final comparison is not made clearly. To strengthen the response, give an accurate overview of the changing rankings and support it with key figures at the main dates.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure, with an introduction, an overview, and separate paragraphs describing groups of sectors. This helps the reader follow the general subject. However, progression is weakened by repeating the claim that manufacturing was largest and agriculture smallest in both the overview and the final sentence, even though the rankings change by 2020. The transitions “On the one hand” and “On the other hand” are used mechanically, and the long sentences joined by “meanwhile” or “in contrast” make comparisons difficult to track. Organise the details by clear trends or time periods, and use linking expressions only where they show a genuine relationship between the data.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use relevant vocabulary such as “increased steadily,” “drops down,” and “lowest,” so the main trends are generally understandable. However, the range is limited and several choices are inaccurate or repetitive. “Manufacturing company” and “healthcare companies” do not describe the sectors appropriately; use “manufacturing sector” and “healthcare sector.” Phrases such as “made up the largest jobs” and “has a most notiable feature” are unclear or unnatural. There are also noticeable spelling errors, including “approxiemately,” “manufactuing,” and “notiable.” Build a more precise set of terms for describing figures and trends, and check spelling and collocations before finishing.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt longer sentences and use some time references, but control is inconsistent, particularly when clauses are joined to compare trends. Agreement and verb forms are frequent problems: “the manufacturing sector have” should be “the manufacturing sector had,” while “agriculture sector have lowest jobs” needs a plural or singular structure with an article. Other examples include “it went up 20 millions” and “remain same,” which need more accurate verb forms and sentence patterns. Articles, plurals, and punctuation are also unreliable, as in “the four sector” and the run-on comparison beginning “On the other hand if we talk about agriculture.” Practise accurate simple sentences first, then combine them with controlled clauses such as “while” and “whereas.”

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