Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-22

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 four sectors of the economy in the US from 1960 to 2020.

Overall, Retail and healthcare jobs increased over the period. On the other hand, Jobs for agriculture sector decreased continuouly over the period.

Starting with retail and healthcare, the figure for retail job stood at 6 millions in 1960,increased at the peak of 15 millions in 2000 and then just rose slightly over 15 millions jobs in 2020.Similarly, the figure for healthcare job stood at round 3 millions in 1960,increased at the peak of 11 millions in 2000 and then just rose over 15 millions jobs in 2020.

The number for Manufacturing jobs was highest from other jobs in 1960 which stood at 15 millions,this number rose to 20 millions jobs at 1980 and then experienced a significant decreased to around 13 millions jobs in 2020.

Finally,demand for agriculture jobs stood at 6 millions people in 1960, the figure decreased continuously at the end of period,the demand for agriculture jobs remained only 2 millions in 2020.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The student covers all four sectors across the given time period, providing an overview and selecting key features and comparisons. The overview captures the general upward trend in retail and healthcare alongside the continuous decline in agriculture, fulfilling the main requirement. However, some data points contain minor inaccuracies when compared against the visual data. For instance, the starting figure for healthcare is stated as around 3 millions (the graph indicates approximately 2 millions), and the 2020 healthcare figure is reported as rising over 15 millions (the graph shows 16 millions, matching retail). Furthermore, the retail peak in 2000 is correctly noted at 15 million, but the description of subsequent trends is slightly vague ('just rose slightly over 15 millions'). Overall, the task is addressed adequately, placing it within the Band 6 descriptor range due to minor data reporting errors and slightly under-developed comparisons.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The response has a clear overall arrangement with a logical division into paragraphs: an introduction, an overview paragraph, followed by body paragraphs grouping retail and healthcare together, manufacturing separately, and agriculture at the end. Cohesive devices are used, such as 'Overall', 'On the other hand', 'Starting with', and 'Finally'. However, some cohesive referencing and transitions are mechanical or slightly repetitive, as seen with the formulaic phrasing 'the figure for... stood at...'. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate different categories of information, contributing to a coherent overall structure that is easy to follow.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary used is adequate for the task, successfully conveying trends and quantities (e.g., 'illustrated', 'increased', 'decreased', 'peak', 'demand'). However, there are several word choice and collocation inaccuracies throughout the response, such as 'increased at the peak' instead of 'peaked at', 'significant decreased' instead of 'significant decrease', and 'demand for agriculture jobs' where 'number of jobs in agriculture' is more accurate. Spelling errors also occur, such as 'continuouly' instead of 'continuously'. While these errors do not impede communication, they restrict the lexical score to Band 6.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating some control over past tense narration (e.g., 'The line graph illustrates...', 'the figure for retail job stood at...'). However, there are frequent grammatical and punctuation errors, such as missing articles ('retail job', 'healthcare job'), comma splices ('in 1960,this number...'), and incorrect verb forms ('experienced a significant decreased'). Sentences are often joined with commas rather than correct conjunctions or semi-colons. Despite these errors, the meaning remains clear, supporting a Band 5.5 to 6.0 score; given that simple structures are mostly accurate, a Band 6 is appropriate.

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

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