Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · 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 6.0)

The linear representation illustrates the information related to the number of jobs in four economy sectors(manufacturing, retail, agriculture and healthcare) in the USA between 1960 and 2020.

Overall, the least number vacancies were in the agriculture sector. During initial year's jobs in retail and healthcare field increased gradually with time and declined in the case of manufacturing sector.

There were 15 million jobs in manufacturing sector and rose slowly to 20 million in 1980. However, it had a significant drop of 7 million till 2020. Moreover, in the retail field, the figure was approximately 6 million in 1960 and rose dramatically to 15 million in next 40 years. The trend recorded an increase of 1 million in 2020. Nearly 6 million people were engaged in agriculture sector, but figure dropped to approximately 3 in 1980 and levelled off till 2000. the trend observed a dip of 1 million in following year. Furthermore, number kept on increasing in healthcare sector, it was 3 million in 1960 and rose steadily to 5 in 1980. It had a significant climb of 11 million in upcoming years.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The student addresses all parts of the task by reporting the main features and trends of the four economic sectors between 1960 and 2020. An overview is attempted in the second paragraph, capturing general trajectories such as the decline in manufacturing and the growth in retail and healthcare. However, there are some data inaccuracies and misreadings against the chart. For example, the student states that manufacturing 'had a significant drop of 7 million till 2020', starting from 20 million in 1980 down to 13 in 2020 (which is correct), but initially states there were 15 million in 1960 and it rose to 20 million in 1980. Furthermore, regarding healthcare, the student claims it was '3 million in 1960' (chart shows approximately 2 million) and that it had a 'significant climb of 11 million' (it rose from 2 million to 16 million, a rise of 14). Despite these minor data discrepancies, the key overall trends are adequately covered.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The response is arranged logically into four paragraphs, including an introductory sentence and an overall summary. Cohesive devices are used to link ideas, such as 'Overall', 'However', 'Moreover', and 'Furthermore'. However, paragraphing and referencing are occasionally flawed. The second paragraph (the overview) is quite brief and blends into the body of the text rather than standing clearly as a distinct introductory summary. Additionally, some transitions feel mechanical, and referencing between sentences can be slightly confusing, such as 'the trend recorded an increase of 1 million in 2020' following the retail description without fully clarifying the specific movement. Overall progression is present, but the organizational structure could be tightened for a higher band.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary suitable for the task, incorporating topic-specific terms like 'manufacturing sector', 'retail field', 'agriculture sector', and 'healthcare sector'. Less common vocabulary is attempted with varying degrees of success, such as 'gradually', 'dramatically', 'levelled off', and 'significant climb'. However, there are noticeable word choice and collocation errors, as well as minor grammatical slips affecting lexical items, such as 'least number vacancies' (should be 'fewest number of vacancies') and 'During initial year's' (should be 'During the initial years'). Spelling is generally correct, but vocabulary control prevents the response from reaching a higher band.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The student demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, using clauses introduced by 'while', 'as', and conjunctions like 'however' and 'moreover'. There are, however, several grammatical errors and punctuation slips throughout the text. Examples include missing articles ('least number vacancies' instead of 'the least number of vacancies', 'initial year's' with an incorrect apostrophe), incorrect prepositional usage ('in agriculture sector' instead of 'in the agriculture sector'), and punctuation issues like a lowercase starting letter in the sentence 'the trend observed a dip...'. While these errors do not impede overall communication, they occur frequently enough to prevent the grammar score from reaching Band 7.

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