Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-08-27

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 given graph illustrates the information regarding different kind of jobs in four sectors of the economy in America from the year of 1960 to 2020.

Overall, it can be observed from the given line chart that amount of manufacturing jobs are higher whereas it is vice versa in case of Agricultural job.

In 1960 ,15 million jobs are required in manufacturing sector in US which then stepped up to 20 million after twenty years. However, job opportunities dropped gradually after 1980 and stood at around 13 million in same sector. Likewise, work vacancies in retail sector figured about 6 million in the first given year. It showed gradual inclined till 2000 via 15 million and approximately 16 million in the last given year.

Furthermore, employment opportunities in Agriculture sector were 6 million in 1960 and inclined by 2 million in 1980. whereas, it remained stable after twenty years. Although, only 2 million career vacancies were essential in Agriculture sector in US. In case of Healthcare sector about 2 million individuals were engaged to do job which then rose up to 5 million in 1980 and around 11 million in 2000. At last it stood at 16 million which were similar to the ratio of Retail sector.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

You have successfully identified the main trends and provided data points for all four sectors. However, the overview is slightly inaccurate; you state that manufacturing jobs are higher, but by the end of the period, healthcare and retail have surpassed it. Additionally, some data points are misread or confusingly presented, such as the description of the Agriculture sector, where you mention it remained stable but then state only 2 million vacancies were essential. To reach a higher band, ensure your overview captures the most significant shifts (e.g., the growth of service sectors versus the decline of manufacturing) and double-check that your data reporting is precise and consistent with the visual information provided.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The response is organized into logical paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the information. You use some cohesive devices like 'Furthermore', 'However', and 'Likewise' to link ideas. However, the flow is occasionally disrupted by awkward phrasing and mechanical transitions. For instance, the transition between the description of the Agriculture sector and the Healthcare sector is abrupt. To improve, focus on using a wider variety of cohesive devices and ensure that the progression of ideas within paragraphs is smoother. The use of referencing could also be more precise to avoid ambiguity when discussing different sectors.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

You have a sufficient range of vocabulary to describe trends, such as 'stepped up', 'dropped gradually', and 'remained stable'. However, there are several instances of imprecise word choice and collocation errors, such as 'amount of manufacturing jobs' (should be 'number of'), 'inclined by' (should be 'increased by'), and 'career vacancies were essential' (which is unnatural in this context). Some phrasing is repetitive, and the use of 'via' to describe a trend is incorrect. Expanding your repertoire of trend-related verbs and nouns, and focusing on accurate collocations, will help you achieve a higher score.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

You attempt a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors throughout the text. Issues include subject-verb agreement (e.g., '15 million jobs are required' instead of 'were'), incorrect tense usage, and awkward sentence construction (e.g., 'it showed gradual inclined'). Punctuation is also inconsistent, particularly with comma placement. While these errors do not completely impede communication, they are frequent enough to distract the reader. To improve, focus on consistent tense usage when describing past data and practice the correct formation of passive voice and noun phrases.

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