Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-08-29
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 6.0)
The graph illustrates information about the number of jobs in the US across four sectors of the economy during 1960 and 2020.
Overall, jobs in retail and healthcare sectors increased significantly while agriculture sector experienced steady decline in the job market. Manufacturing sector had the highest number of jobs initially but later it started to decline.
Retail and healthcare sector initially had 6 and 2 jobs respectively in the year 1960. Retail sector saw constant growth reaching 10 in 1980 and 15 in 2000 after which the growth flattened reaching 16 in the year 2020. Healthcare sector witnessed a similar growth reaching 5 jobs in 1980 to 11 in 2000 and then rose steeply to 16 in 2020.
Agriculture sector had 6 jobs in 1960 same as the retail sector but as time progressed it started to fall, reaching 3 in 1980 and 2000 and then it fell to 2 in 2020. Manufacturing sector started strong having 15 jobs in 1960 which increased to 20 in 1980. From 1980, it started to decrease reaching 17 in 2000 and later reached 13 in 2020.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 6.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 6.0 |
| Overall | 6.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0
You have successfully identified the main trends and provided a clear overview of the data. You covered all four sectors and made relevant comparisons, such as noting that agriculture and retail started at the same point in 1960. However, the response lacks a clear unit of measurement (e.g., 'millions of jobs'), which is a significant omission for an Academic Task 1 response. While the trends are accurately described, the report would benefit from more precise synthesis of the data rather than listing figures chronologically for each sector. Overall, the response is well-structured and addresses the prompt effectively.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5
The response is logically organized, with a clear introduction, an overview paragraph, and two body paragraphs focusing on different sectors. The progression of ideas is easy to follow. You use some cohesive devices, such as 'Overall,' 'initially,' and 'as time progressed,' which help guide the reader. However, the transition between the description of the retail/healthcare sectors and the agriculture/manufacturing sectors could be smoother. Additionally, some sentences feel slightly repetitive in structure, which slightly impacts the flow. Overall, the paragraphing is appropriate and contributes to a coherent response.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'increased significantly,' 'steady decline,' 'flattened,' and 'rose steeply.' This allows for clear communication of the trends. However, the vocabulary is somewhat limited and repetitive. To reach a higher band, you should incorporate more varied synonyms for 'increase' and 'decrease' (e.g., 'surged,' 'plummeted,' 'fluctuated') and avoid repeating the word 'jobs' so frequently. There are no significant spelling errors, and the word choices are generally accurate in the context of describing graph data.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0
You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, which is sufficient for this task. Most sentences are clear and easy to understand. There are some minor grammatical slips, such as missing articles (e.g., 'in retail and healthcare sectors' should be 'in the retail and healthcare sectors' and 'Manufacturing sector' should be 'The manufacturing sector'). Additionally, there are some punctuation issues, such as missing commas after introductory phrases. While these errors do not impede communication, they prevent the response from reaching a higher band. Focusing on article usage and sentence variety would improve your score.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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