Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · 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 6.5)

The line chart illustrates how many jobs the four economical sectors in the US generated from 1960 till 2020

Overall, healthcare and retail sectors had the highest employment rates while manufacturing and agricultural fields fell behind comparatively.

Retail sector started off at just above 5 million in the year 1960 and went off to around 15 million by 2000, reaching slightly higher by the year 2020. While agriculture sector began at the same level as retail, it had a completely different growth curve comparatively. The number of jobs in the sector fell to almost half in 1980, gowing even lower by 2020, around 2 million.

In 1960 healthcare in terms of job generation was at its lowest. It was sitting at just above 2 million but ended up with a great surge, coinciding with retail sector by 2020, reaching slightly above 15 million. Manufacturing sector on the other hand, despite having the highest starting point in 1960 i.e, 15 million alongwith peaking at 20 million in 1980, put out less jobs than healthcare by 2020; around 14 million.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The student successfully covers all four sectors (manufacturing, retail, agriculture, and healthcare) across the given time frame from 1960 to 2020. An overview is provided, highlighting the contrasting fortunes of healthcare/retail versus manufacturing/agriculture. Key features and comparisons are appropriately reported, such as manufacturing starting at 15 million in 1960 and peaking in 1980, while healthcare surged from a low point of 2 million to tie with retail at 16 million by 2020. Data points are generally accurate according to the visual data. The response meets all requirements for Task Achievement at a Band 7.0 level.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The text features a clear overall organisation and logical progression. It is divided into an introduction, an overview paragraph, and two body paragraphs that group the sectors logically for comparison. Cohesive devices such as 'Overall', 'While agriculture sector', 'In 1960 healthcare', and 'on the other hand' are used effectively to guide the reader through the data. Paragraphing is used appropriately. However, a few minor cohesion glitches and punctuation omissions slightly limit fluency, placing this criterion solidly at Band 7.0.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The student demonstrates a sufficient range of vocabulary to describe trends and figures, using terms such as 'generated', 'employment rates', 'growth curve', 'surge', and 'coinciding'. There are some less common lexical items attempted with reasonable success ('growth curve', 'coinciding'). However, there are minor awkward expressions such as 'economical sectors' instead of 'economic sectors', and 'put out less jobs' instead of 'generated fewer jobs'. These minor errors in word choice and collocation prevent a higher score, but the range is adequate for a Band 6.5.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The response includes a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, such as subordinate clauses beginning with 'While' and 'despite having'. Grammatical control is generally good, with frequent error-free sentences. However, there are occasional missing punctuation marks (such as the missing full stop at the end of the first paragraph) and slight mechanical errors in sentence boundaries. Overall, the grammatical control supports clear communication, fitting the Band 6.5 profile well.

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