Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-18

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 represented diagram compares four different jobs namely manufacturing, retail, agriculture, and healthcare, which contributed to the economic growth of United States between the year1960 and 2020.

Overall, it is evident that manufacturing sector dominated all other job sectors initially, however, it experienced remarkable decline in the mid period. Whereas sectors like retail and healthcare experienced similar bellwether of gradual growth throughout the peroid. However, healthcare remained the lowest contributor.

To begin with, in 1960 manufacturing sector was sitting at 15 millions, which gradually rose by 5 millions by 1980. Later, it constantly experienced downward trend. By the end of 2020 manufacturing accounted for approximately 14 millions. However, retail and healthcare sector witnessed similar burgeon, which started around 6 millions and 2 millions respectively. Both of these sectors steadily burgeon and met approximately at 16 millions by the end of 2020.

Moreover, agriculture initially started at the same point as retails in 1960, which constantly remained to decreased. It became the lowest contributor of economy in the US, which was recorded to sitt around a million.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The student successfully covers all parts of the task by reporting the main features and making relevant comparisons across the four sectors between 1960 and 2020. An overview is provided in the second paragraph, capturing the dominant position of manufacturing initially and the growth of retail and healthcare. Key data points are cited, such as manufacturing starting at 15 million and healthcare/retail meeting around 16 million by 2020. However, there are some minor inaccuracies in data interpretation: the student states healthcare remained the lowest contributor, whereas agriculture actually finished as the lowest contributor at around 2 million (or 1 million according to the text). Furthermore, manufacturing in 2020 is stated as approximately 14 million rather than the actual 13 million. Despite these minor discrepancies, the overall trends are well captured.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The response is organized into logical paragraphs, starting with an introduction and overview, followed by body paragraphs detailing the specific data trends. Cohesive devices are used to guide the reader, such as 'To begin with', 'Later', and 'Moreover'. However, some logical progression is slightly flawed, particularly in the overview where healthcare is misidentified as the lowest contributor, and in the referencing within the final paragraph regarding agriculture. Paragraphing is used appropriately, but cohesion can occasionally feel mechanical rather than fluid.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary suitable for the task, attempting less common lexical items such as 'dominated', 'remarkable decline', 'bellwether', and 'burgeon'. However, there are several word choice and collocation errors, such as 'experienced similar bellwether of gradual growth' (incorrect use of bellwether), 'constantly experienced downward trend' (missing article), and 'sitt around a million' (spelling and awkward phrasing). Despite these inaccuracies, communication is not impeded and the vocabulary is sufficient to convey the main trends.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, incorporating relative clauses and subordinate structures ('which contributed to the economic growth', 'while sectors like retail and healthcare experienced'). There are, however, several grammatical and mechanical errors throughout the text, including tense and preposition slips ('between the year1960', 'sitting at 15 millions', 'remained to decreased', 'sitt around'). Punctuation and article usage also show occasional lapses. These errors do not impede communication, but they prevent the response from achieving a higher band.

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

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.