Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-08-16

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 compares the numbers of the US economy jobs sectors, which are Manufacturing, Retail, Agriculture and Healthcare, between 1960 and 2020.

starting with Manufacturing sector, it stood at 15 million at 1960, then gradually grew to 20 million in 1980, then declined to nearly 13 million in 2020. Followed by Agriculture, in 1960 it was about 6 million, which slightly decreased to around 3 million after 20 years and remained stable till 2020 and went just under 3 million.

Moving on to Retail sector, which grew steadily from about 6 million in 1960 to almost 15 million in 2000 and went slightly up by 1 million in 2020. At last we have Healthcare sector, which was approximately 2 million by 1960, and significantly climbed from 5 million in 1980 to about 16 million in 2020.

Overall, Healthcare is one of the sectors of the economy in the US that faced a significant growth, compared by Manufacturing that faced a noticeable decline over the years.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response covers all four sectors and identifies the main trends, such as the growth in Healthcare and the decline in Manufacturing. However, the overview is somewhat weak; it focuses only on two sectors rather than summarizing the overall picture of the data. While the key features are highlighted, the comparison between sectors could be more analytical. For instance, noting that Healthcare overtook Manufacturing as the dominant sector by the end of the period would have strengthened the response. The data points are generally accurate, but the report lacks a cohesive synthesis of the information provided in the graph.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The response is organized into logical paragraphs, with each sector discussed in turn. However, the use of cohesive devices is somewhat mechanical and repetitive. Phrases like 'starting with', 'Moving on to', and 'At last' are functional but basic. There are also some issues with referencing and flow; for example, the transition 'Followed by Agriculture' at the start of a sentence is grammatically awkward. While the progression of ideas is clear, the paragraphing and the use of linking words could be more sophisticated to achieve a higher band score.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is adequate for the task, allowing the writer to describe trends such as 'gradually grew', 'slightly decreased', and 'significantly climbed'. However, the range is somewhat limited and repetitive. There are minor errors in word choice and collocation, such as 'numbers of the US economy jobs sectors' (which is clunky) and 'compared by Manufacturing' (should be 'compared with'). To reach a higher band, you should aim to use more precise terminology and varied collocations to describe data trends, moving beyond basic verbs like 'grew' or 'went'.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The response uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are several grammatical errors, particularly with prepositions and articles, such as 'at 1960' (should be 'in 1960') and 'the Manufacturing sector' (often used without 'the' when referring to the sector generally). Some sentences are slightly disjointed, such as 'remained stable till 2020 and went just under 3 million'. While these errors do not impede communication, they occur frequently enough to prevent a higher score. Increasing the variety of complex structures and ensuring consistent subject-verb agreement would improve the accuracy.

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

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