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 assigned line chart illustrates number of employment sectors in the US from 1960 to 2020. Employment sector includes different job fields such as manufacturing, retail, agriculture, and healthcare.
Overall, it is clearly seen that a higher number of jobs were available in manufacturing sector till 2000 whereas least number of jobs were in agriculture. Besides, jobs in retail and healthcare showed an upward trend.
To begin with, about 3 million jobs were in agriculture field which later showed an increase of around 12 million. Similarily, a similar trend was seen in retail domain with the growth from 7 to 17 million jobs.
In addition to this, Manufacturing sector first showed a sharp rise of 5 million which afterwards decreased by 8 million. Furthermore, in agriculture sector almost downward trend was observed throughout the time period and went from 7 million to 3 million in 1980 and remained same for next fourty years.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0
The response attempts to cover the main features of the chart, providing an overview and mentioning some trends across the four sectors. However, there are significant inaccuracies in data reporting. For instance, the student states that jobs in agriculture 'went from 7 million to 3 million in 1980', whereas the chart clearly shows agriculture started at 6 million in 1960. Furthermore, the description of retail growth ('growth from 7 to 17 million') and manufacturing ('decreased by 8 million') contains factual discrepancies with the visual data. The overview captures some general trends, but the lack of accurate data selection and manipulation prevents it from moving into higher band territory. It meets the minimum word count requirement, but data handling remains inconsistent.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The essay attempts a logical structure with an introduction, an overview paragraph, and body details. However, the paragraphing and organization are somewhat disrupted by contradictory statements. For instance, the student mentions agriculture details in multiple places rather than grouping information cohesively. Cohesive devices are used, such as 'To begin with', 'Similarily' (misspelled), and 'In addition to this', but referencing is occasionally weak or repetitive. Paragraphing is present, but the overall progression of ideas lacks smooth transitions, resulting in a somewhat mechanical flow.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The student demonstrates an adequate vocabulary for the task, attempting topic-specific terms such as 'employment sectors', 'manufacturing', 'retail', 'agriculture', and 'healthcare'. However, there are notable word choice errors and unnatural phrases, such as 'illustrates number of employment sectors' instead of 'illustrates the number of jobs in four employment sectors', and spelling errors like 'Similarily' and 'fourty'. Less common vocabulary is attempted with some inaccuracy, placing it firmly at Band 5.5.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The text displays a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, such as 'Overall, it is clearly seen that a higher number of jobs were available in manufacturing sector till 2000...'. However, there are frequent grammatical errors, particularly missing articles ('in manufacturing sector', 'in agriculture sector') and incorrect prepositions. While these errors do not completely impede communication, they occur regularly throughout the text, restricting the score to Band 5.5.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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