Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-08-31

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 6.5)

The line graph illustrates the number of jobs, in millions, across four economics sectors in the us-manufacturing, retail, healthcare, and agriculture-between 1960 and 2020.

overall, retail and healthcare experienced significant growth over the 60-year period, while manufacturing and agriculture saw overall declines.despite its eventual drop, manufacturing provided the highest number of jobs for the majority of the timeframe.

in 1960, manufacturing was the primary employer with 15 million jobs.this figure grew to a peak of 20 million in 1980 before decreasing steadily to 17 million in 2000 and reaching 12.5 million by 2020.in contrast, agriculture started at around 6.5 million jobs in 1960, dropped sharply to 3.5 million by 1980, and continued a gradual decline, ending at 2.5 million in 2020.

conversely, employment in the service industries rose consistently. healthcare began with the lowest total in 1960 at 2 million, but grew steadily to reach 11 million by 2000 and finished at 14 million in 2020.retail followed a similar upward path, starting at 6 million jobs in 1960, reaching 15 million in 2000, and ultimately becoming the largest sector in 2020 at 16 million jobs.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.5

The response effectively addresses all parts of the task. You have provided a clear overview of the trends and selected key data points to support the main features. The comparison between the declining sectors (manufacturing and agriculture) and the growing sectors (retail and healthcare) is well-executed. The data is accurate and relevant, and the report is well-structured to highlight the shifts in the US economy over the 60-year period. You have successfully identified the peak and end-point figures, which provides a comprehensive summary of the graph.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The response is logically organized with a clear introduction, an overview, and two body paragraphs that group the data effectively by trend. Cohesive devices such as 'in contrast', 'conversely', and 'ultimately' are used appropriately to guide the reader. However, the paragraphing is slightly marred by the lack of capitalization at the start of sentences and after periods, which makes the text appear less professional. While the logical flow is strong, the mechanical errors in punctuation and capitalization slightly detract from the overall cohesion.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.5

You have used a sufficient range of vocabulary to describe trends, such as 'significant growth', 'steady decline', and 'primary employer'. The terminology is accurate and appropriate for an academic report. To reach a higher band, you could incorporate more sophisticated collocations or varied synonyms for 'jobs' (e.g., 'employment figures', 'workforce numbers', 'positions'). There are no significant errors in word choice, and the vocabulary is well-suited to the task requirements.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The response demonstrates a good mix of simple and complex sentence structures. However, there are persistent mechanical errors throughout the text, specifically the failure to capitalize the first letter of sentences and proper nouns like 'US'. While these do not impede communication, they are frequent enough to prevent a higher score. Grammatically, the sentence construction is generally sound, but the lack of attention to basic punctuation and capitalization conventions is a significant weakness that needs to be addressed.

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