Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.0 · 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 5.0)
THE GRAPH ILLUSTRATES THE INFORMATION ABOUT THE NUMBER OF FOUR DIFFERENT SECTORS OF THE ECONOMY IN THE US FROM 1960 TO 2020.
OEVRALL,RETAIL AND HEALTHCARE WAS THE INCREASE STADIALY AND PEAKED AT THE SAME AROUND 15 MILLIONS IN THE 2020.WHILE THE NUMBER OF MANUFACTURING JOBS WERE FLUCTUATING.WHEREAS THE AGRICULTURAL WAS THE FALLEN ALL OVER THE THE PERIOD OF TIME .
IN 1960, MANUFACTURING WAS THE MOST PREFERABLE JOB AT 15 MILLION AND THEN AGRICULTURE HAD AROUND 7 MILLIONS.IN ADDITION MANUFACTURING WAS THE INCREASE STEADILY AND REACHED AT 20 MILLIONS.BESIDES AGRICULTURE JOBS DECREASED AT THE SAME TIME APPROXIMATELY 4 MILLIONS IN 1980.MOREOVER,IN 2000, JOBS IN MANUFACTURING WERE FALL AND AGRICULTURAL WAS REMAIN SAME .
THE JOBS IN RETAIL WERE NEAR BY 5 MILLIONS IN 1960 . WHILE HEALTHCARE WAS AROUND 3 MILLIONS IN 1960.AFTERTHAT RISEN STEADILY AND REACHED AT 17 MILLIONS IN 2020 AND HEALTHCARE ALSO ROSEN AND PEAKED AT AROUND 17 MILLION IN 2020
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 4.5 |
| Overall | 5.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0
The response covers all parts of the prompt by reporting information on the four economic sectors and attempting to make comparisons over the period from 1960 to 2020. An overview is present at the beginning, noting the upward trends for retail and healthcare, and fluctuations or declines in other sectors. However, there are some data inaccuracies and misreadings; for instance, the student states that retail and healthcare peaked at around 15 million in 2020, whereas healthcare reached 16 or 17 million and retail also reached 16 million. Furthermore, some data points are slightly vague or contradictory. Nevertheless, the main trends are identified, satisfying the baseline requirements for Band 5.0.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0
The response is written entirely in capital letters, which creates a negative visual impression, and the paragraphing is poor, lacking clear logical progression and development. Cohesive devices are used awkwardly or inaccurately, such as starting sentences with 'OEVRALL,RETAIL AND HEALTHCARE WAS THE INCREASE STADIALY' and using repetitive transitional phrases like 'IN ADDITION' and 'BESIDES'. The flow of information is disjointed, making it difficult for the reader to follow the comparisons smoothly. These issues place the response firmly at Band 5.0 for coherence and cohesion.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.0
The vocabulary used is very limited and repetitive, relying on basic terms such as 'number', 'jobs', 'sector', 'increase', and 'decrease'. There are frequent word-choice and collocation errors, such as 'THE INCREASE STADIALY', 'AGRICULTURAL WAS THE FALLEN', 'MOST PREFERABLE JOB', and 'RISEN STEADILY'. Spelling errors like 'OEVRALL' and 'STADIALY' also occur. While the vocabulary is minimally adequate to convey basic data points, the frequent errors and lack of range restrict the score to Band 5.0.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 4.5
The grammatical range is extremely limited, consisting mostly of simple and awkwardly constructed compound sentences. There are frequent, persistent grammatical errors, including severe subject-verb agreement and word-form issues such as 'RETAIL AND HEALTHCARE WAS THE INCREASE', 'AGRICULTURAL WAS THE FALLEN', 'JOBS IN MANUFACTURING WERE FALL', and 'AGRICULTURAL WAS REMAIN SAME'. Punctuation is also poorly managed, with missing spaces and inappropriate capitalization. These frequent errors cause significant difficulty for the reader, aligning with Band 4.0 or 4.5 descriptors, earning a 4.5.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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