Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-20
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 below line graph demonstrates the four different areas of US economy from 1960 to 2020 about the number of jobs.
Overall, retail and healthcare sector grow over the period in terms of number of jobs in US. While, manufacturing start with greater apportunity for job and then show a decline from 1980 to 2020. Also the agriculture sector faced a reduce trend from 1980 to 2020.
The healthcare sector in US provides 5 millions jobs in 1980 and climb upto 11 millions in 2000 and goes to 16 millions in 2020. Similarly, retail, gave 6 millions jobs in 1960 and showed a surge upto 10 millions in 1980 and 15 million in 2000. From 2000 the retail sector have a steady rate in providing the jobs opportunities.
The manufacturing sector of US economy showed a brilliant start from 15 million in 1960 and jump to 20 millions in next 20 years. After 1980, it gradually decreases down to 13 millions in 2020. In addition, agriculture area shows a good start in 1960 providing about 6 millions jobs and then giving a steady decline over the period from 1980 to 2020.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 6.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0
The student successfully reports the main features and trends of the line graph regarding job numbers in four US economic sectors between 1960 and 2020. An overview is provided, highlighting the general growth in retail and healthcare alongside the decline in agriculture and the fluctuating pattern in manufacturing. Key data points are selected and reported, such as the peak of manufacturing at 20 million in 1980 and the rise of healthcare to 16 million in 2020. However, there are minor factual inaccuracies in data citation; for instance, the healthcare sector started at 2 million in 1960 rather than 5 million in 1980 as implied, and retail figures contain slight misreadings for 1960. Overall, the task is addressed competently, satisfying the core requirements of academic task 1.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The response is arranged coherently with a clear overall progression. It begins with an introductory sentence and an overview paragraph, followed by two body paragraphs detailing the specific sectors. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate different groups of data (healthcare/retail versus manufacturing/agriculture). Cohesive devices are employed, such as 'Overall', 'While', 'Similarly', and 'In addition', although some transitions feel slightly mechanical or repetitive in structure. Referencing is mostly clear, though occasional clumsy phrasing affects the seamless flow of ideas between sentences.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, attempting some less common economic and statistical terms such as 'sector', 'surge', 'steady rate', and 'gradually decreases'. However, there are noticeable lexical and collocation errors, such as 'reduce trend' instead of 'downward trend', 'apportunity' instead of 'opportunity', and 'giving a steady decline' rather than 'experiencing a steady decline'. Word choices are sometimes imprecise, yet communication is not impeded, and the vocabulary remains generally functional for describing visual data.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The response features a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, utilizing structures like subordinate clauses introduced by 'while' and participial phrases. However, grammatical accuracy is inconsistent. There are several noticeable errors, including subject-verb agreement issues ('retail and healthcare sector grow', 'agriculture area shows'), preposition and article errors ('in US' instead of 'in the US'), and awkward verb tense usage ('manufacturing start', 'retail gave'). Punctuation is generally acceptable, and while these errors persist throughout, they rarely impede the overall clarity of the communication.
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