Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-16

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 illustrates the number of jobs in the four sectors (manufacturing, retail, agriculture, healthcare) in the economy of United States from the year 1960 to 2020. The units are measured in millions.

Overall, the manufacturing jobs were highest, reaching up to 20 million. While, the jobs for the agriculture industry were at there lowest, reaching below 5 million jobs every year.

Jobs of manufacturing industry were about 15 million in year 1960, it reached it peak but gradually decreased below 15 million jobs. The agriculture industry was above 5 million jobs in year 1960, but it reached up to 3 million jobs in the year 2020.

On the other hand, retail jobs were same as agriculture in 1960. it reached its peak in 2020 which was 16 million jobs. A similar growth was found in healthcare industry which was 3 million jobs in 1960. The healthcare jobs grew further in the upcoming years and it reached same as the retail jobs in 2020.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The student successfully addresses the main features of the prompt by reporting data across the four sectors from 1960 to 2020. An overview is provided, noting that manufacturing jobs were initially highest while agriculture was lowest. However, the task achievement is limited by several inaccuracies and imprecise data reporting. For instance, the student states that manufacturing jobs 'reached up to 20 million' in the overview, but later mentions they were 'about 15 million in year 1960' and 'reached it peak' before declining, which lacks exact clarity about the 1980 peak of 20 million. Additionally, stating 'retail jobs were same as agriculture in 1960' is accurate (both started at 6 million), but the overall selection and support of key comparisons could be more thoroughly extended. The response meets the minimum word count requirement.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The response is organized into four paragraphs, including an introduction, an overview, and two body paragraphs detailing the specific sectors. Cohesive devices and transition signals are used, such as 'Overall', 'While', and 'On the other hand'. However, referencing and cohesion are sometimes faulty or mechanical. For example, starting the second sentence of the overview with 'While' creates a fragment ('While, the jobs for the agriculture industry were at there lowest...'). Paragraphing is attempted appropriately to group related sectors, but the logical progression within paragraphs feels a bit disjointed due to abrupt shifts between data points.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully incorporating topic-specific terms such as 'manufacturing', 'retail', 'agriculture', 'healthcare', and 'economy'. There are attempts to use less common vocabulary like 'gradually decreased', 'peak', and 'growth'. However, there are notable word choice and spelling errors that detract from precision, such as writing 'there lowest' instead of 'their lowest', 'Jobs of manufacturing industry' instead of 'Manufacturing jobs', and slight awkwardness in phrasing like 'Jobs of manufacturing industry were about 15 million in year 1960, it reached it peak'. These inaccuracies do not impede overall communication but prevent access to higher band scores.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The response shows a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, such as subordinate clauses ('while the jobs for the agriculture industry were at there lowest'). Grammatical control is variable. There are several punctuation and structural errors, including comma splices ('in year 1960, it reached it peak but gradually decreased' and 'retail jobs were same as agriculture in 1960. it reached its peak'). Furthermore, missing articles ('in year 1960', 'in healthcare industry') and possessive/preposition errors ('at there lowest', 'growth was found in healthcare industry') occur frequently. Despite these errors, the meaning remains mostly clear to the reader.

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

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